Knot Your Fingers Through Mine
by myeveryday
Summary: Somehow, Finn Hudson had woken up half-naked next to Rachel Berry with what appeared to be matching wedding bands. Finchel, AU
1. i somehow find you and i collide

**From what I understand, the arts were a huge part of Cory Monteith's life. His acting and his music is what saved him and helped him through many difficult times in his life. This writing is a continuation of that art. It's a continuation of Finn Hudson, and of the way that he beautifully portrayed that character.**

**I don't want to lose what brought me to all of you. This writing allowed me to grow as a person, and it gave me confidence when I needed it. It lifted me up through hard times in my life. It brought me to many amazing people. I can thank Glee, and by extension Cory Monteith and the rest of the cast, for that. I don't want to lose that, or any of you.**

**One day, I'll continue with All That I Ever Was. It won't be for a very long time, given the heavy nature of the content. But know that, as always, Finn and Rachel get their happy ending. In the meantime, I have this story and another long multi-chapter I was working on. With your support, I'd like to post those and continue with this. In some way, I hope that it helps you through your grief. Beyond that, I don't know what will happen. But for now, we're going support each other in any way that we can. This is my way. I'm going to do my best to give Finchel that happy ending they fought so hard for and more than deserve.**

**Thank you for all of the support I've received from you all so far. I can only hope that I've done the same for you.  
**

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything related to **_**Glee**_** or anything else. This story title comes from the song "Open Your Eyes" by Snow Patrol. This chapter titles comes from the song "Collide" by Howie Day.**

* * *

When Rachel Berry opened her eyes, she immediately regretted it.

The sun streaming through the windows was entirely too bright and made her head pound even harder than it already had been previously. She yanked the pillow over her head and groaned into the soft sheets surrounding her body.

She shifted a little, curling more into the blanket covering her lower half. She quickly became aware of the fact that she was only wearing her bra and pair of underwear, and she wondered how she ended up in that. Normally, her sleeping attire was of the shorts and tank top variety. And the longer she lay there, the more she realized that this wasn't the bed she normally slept in.

And suddenly, Rachel felt the arm draped across her waist.

She froze with her head under the pillow. Holding her breath, she slowly turned her head and lifted the pillow away. She didn't really know who she was going to find next to her, and her stomach swooped nervously in anticipation.

As soon as she caught sight of her companion's face, a screech escaped her throat.

A head of messy, thick, brown hair appeared from under the blankets. Light freckles dusted cheeks under the amber eyes that sleepily blinked open. He yawned before he sat up, stretching and revealing that he wasn't wearing a shirt.

He rubbed the back of his head, making his hair stand up even more. With eyes half-open, he looked down at Rachel. "Can you stop with the noise?"

"Finn Hudson!" Rachel couldn't stop herself from yelling, even though it only made her head throb more. She sat up and balled the comforter in her lap. "What are you doing in my room?"

Finn rubbed his eyes before he looked around. "Kind of looks like we're in my room, Rach."

"Don't call me that," she snapped. She was so on edge as she scrambled to figure out what was going on. "And it has it occurred to you that we're only in our underwear?"

Finn lifted the thick comforter and peered under the blankets. He smirked when he looked back over at Rachel. "Would you look that? We are. Those are cute stars, by the way."

Rachel's cheeks turned bright red and she resisted the urge to throw the covers over her head. She had almost forgotten that she was just in her undergarments. "I don't think we slept together, but we ended up in our underwear somehow."

Finn's amber eyes scanned her form, which caused a strange reaction in Rachel's body. She felt heated all over and her heart fluttered in her chest. She forced herself not to lock eyes with him and instead twisted the sheets between her fingers.

"It might have something to do with the hickey on your neck," Finn stated once he was finished his study of her.

Rachel's hand flew up to her neck. Sure enough, she could feel the tender skin there. She scowled darkly at him and reached out with her other hand to push against his chest. "Finn!"

But Finn didn't respond to her yelling. Instead, he caught the hand that she had used to push him and brought it up to his face. "Where did you get that?" he asked. For the first time since they had woken up, he was serious.

"Get what?" Rachel demanded angrily. She yanked her left hand back to see what it was that he was staring at. She found a beautiful diamond ring staring her in the face. Next to it was a slim, matching band. Her heart stopped in her chest and she swallowed hard. "What is this?"

Finn stared at her left hand before he slowly lifted his. Suddenly understanding what he was thinking, Rachel grabbed his hand and yanked it towards her face. There, she found a ring on his third finger.

"Finn…" Rachel began, but she didn't know how to finish.

Finn looked at the ring on his hand and the set on Rachel's third finger of her left hand. "I…" Finn seemed to be at a loss for words as well. So they sat there on the bed in their underwear on a late Sunday morning, not really understanding what was happening.

They didn't really have much time to sit there and think about it, however. Someone started banging on the hotel suite door and would not let up. When it didn't open immediately, the person on the other side resorted to yelling.

"OPEN THE FUCKING DOOR!"

Rachel groaned and flopped back on the bed, pulling the comforter over her head. "Oh my God, it's my brother!" Her words were muffled by the comforter, and she didn't really want to pull it back. She just wanted to lay in the bed with the soft sheets forever. It was better than facing reality at the moment.

She waited to see if Finn would answer the door. When the banging and the yelling didn't cease, however, Rachel peeked out from under the covers. Finn was sitting exactly as he had been before, his pale skin tinted slightly green. He looked down at Rachel before he sucked in a deep breath.

"Do you want to answer, or should I?" he asked quietly. Finn's question was punctuated by her older brother (who also happened to be one of Finn's closest friends) once again yelling, "DAMN IT, OPEN THE FUCKING DOOR! AND EVERYONE BETTER BE FUCKING FULLY CLOTHED!"

Rachel sighed before she slipped out of bed. Despite the seriousness of the situation, she could feel Finn's eyes on her as she searched the room for her dress in only her underwear. Finding it on the floor near the door, Rachel quickly pulled it on before she opened it.

Noah Puckerman was standing there with a near murderous expression on his face. It only grew worse when he saw his little sister. "Oh, that's fucking great," he snapped. "You're still wearing the dress you had on last night."

Rachel rolled her eyes. "Is it really necessary for you to use such vulgar language?"

"It is after what happened last night," Puck said as he pushed past his little sister and into the hotel suite. Thankfully, Finn had heeded his warning and had found a t-shirt to pull on. Rachel didn't give Puck time to greet his best friend as she followed him.

"What happened last night?" Rachel demanded.

Puck froze and slowly turned to face her. "You mean, you don't remember?" When Rachel shook her head, Puck turned to Finn. "Do you?" Finn shook his head as well and Puck sighed heavily. "I can't believe the two of you. You're both fucking idiots."

"How about you tell us what's going on?" Finn snapped. He was fed up with the blank memory from the night before. Not only that, but he was disappointed in himself. He normally didn't drink enough to black out. Last night had been a celebration and he guessed that it had gotten away from him. He was also on edge because of how he had woken up half-naked next to Rachel with what appeared to be matching wedding bands.

Puck stalked right up to Finn and pushed on his shoulders. "You don't get to bitch at me! Not after what you did last night!"

"Oh my gosh!" Rachel jumped between Puck and Finn, holding her hands out. "The two of you need to stop right now." Turning to Finn, she said, "Don't provoke him. As his best friend, you know how he is." Facing her older brother, Rachel added, "And you need to tell us exactly what's going on right now."

Puck looked at his little sister—his sweet, innocent little sister—with an unreadable expression on his face. "I'm going to tell you a story."

"Noah—" Rachel began, but Puck cut her off.

"Just listen! It goes like this: There's a big news story going around. You want to know why? Because the new quarterback that the New York Jets signed married the little sister of one of his teammates while they were in Vegas last night!"

Rachel and Finn stared blankly at Puck. They both heard what he had said, but they had trouble actually registering what was going on. Puck threw his hands up into the air and cursed liberally for several long moments before finally gathering his wits enough to speak.

"You—" he pointed and at Rachel. "And you—" he pointed at Finn. "Got fucking married last night!"

* * *

Rachel could only stare at the television with wide eyes and her mouth open in surprise. There were several pictures of Finn and Rachel taken at the club where they had been celebrating last night (that Rachel didn't even remember taking. However, she later found them on her phone) as an entertainment reporter gave what details they knew.

"_Apparently, Finn Hudson had two things to celebrate last night. He, along with a few of his teammates and friends, traveled to Las Vegas after the news of his signing. Not only has he officially signed on as the new quarterback for the New York Jets, he has also just married the younger sister of his teammate Noah Puckerman. The two married in a quiet ceremony last night before retreating back to a hotel. No further word has been given, but we wish every happiness to the new couple!_"

Finn and Puck weren't even paying attention to the report. They were both trying to contact their manager, calling nonstop. This confused Rachel, given that their manager was the same person. Next to her, Rachel's phone buzzed with an unknown number. Having already ignored calls from most of her friends and family, Rachel didn't know why she decided to answer this one.

"Hello?" she asked cautiously.

"Ms. Berry?" Rachel breathed a sigh of relief when she heard the voice of Will Schuester. This was the man that was Finn and Puck's manager. "I'm sorry for calling you, but both Finn and Puck are trying to call me at the same time and I really wanted the chance to speak to all three of you all together. Can you tell them that I'll be at the hotel in five minutes?"

This was an extremely serious matter. They all lived in New York, and that's where Will had been. He must have been on a plane all night to make it to Vegas in time.

"Of course, Mr. Schuester," Rachel said. "And… I don't… What are we…" Rachel didn't know what she was trying to ask. She was at a complete loss, and it really threw her off. This had never happened to Rachel before. She normally had everything planned out and didn't lose control like she had the night before.

"Don't worry, Ms. Berry," Will said. "We'll figure something out."

Despite the soothing quality of Will's voice, Rachel didn't feel any better. She knew that he was just saying that to try and calm her down, but it was having the opposite effect. She and Finn had found themselves in quite the situation and there was no easy way out of it. She hung up with the manager and turned to face Finn and Puck.

"You can stop calling him," Rachel said. "He'll be here in a few minutes."

"How do you know?" Puck snapped.

Rachel stood up from the sofa and planted her hands on her hips, facing off against her older brother. "He just called me and told me so. He couldn't get ahold of either of you because neither of you would stop calling."

Finn took Rachel's vacated seat on the couch. "Would you two stop? My head hurts."

Puck thrust a threatening finger at Finn. "I have nothing to say to you. Shut the hell up."

Finn glared at his friend. "Look, I just—"

"The two of you need to stop it right now!" Rachel exclaimed. She let out a small groan and pressed her fingers to her temples. "My head hurts so much. I'm never drinking that much ever again. And I'm definitely not coming back to Las Vegas."

Puck snorted. "Exactly. Look what happened. This time, what happened in Vegas definitely isn't staying there."

"Stop it," Rachel repeated. Thankfully, Rachel didn't have to do much more refereeing because a knock sounded at the door. She moved as quickly as she could to answer it in order to stop their new guest from knocking again. Even that small sound caused Rachel's head to throb in pain.

Will smiled politely at her when she answered the door. "Hello, Ms. Berry. How are you feeling?"

Rachel gave the older man a small smile in return and stepped aside to let him into the hotel suite. Instead of answering his question, she said, "It's nice to see you, Mr. Schuester." Which was really just Rachel's way of saying that she wanted him to figure their problem out, and quickly.

"Tell me, Will," Puck said as soon as he caught sight of his manager. "Does it say anywhere in my contract that I can't maim a teammate who defiled my baby sister?"

Finn had been trying his best to hold it together, but he was quickly losing patience with Puck. "We didn't sleep together!" he exclaimed.

"Like hell you didn't!" Puck snapped. "You dumbasses got married. I'm not stupid, you know."

"Oh my God!" Once again, Rachel jumped between the arguing friends. "Noah, that is in no way any of your business! I can't believe I'm talking about this with my older brother right now."

"This isn't a picnic for me either," Puck retorted. "It's not like I want to think about that."

Will took his jacket off and laid it across the armrest of the couch. He looked as if he hadn't gotten much sleep; that was probably because of all the reporters that had been calling since the news of Rachel and Finn's wedding broke. He reached over and turned off the television, silencing another report about the sudden marriage.

"How about we all just sit down for a bit?" Will's tone was such that all three young adults knew that they had better obey. So they did, with Finn sitting on one end of the couch and Puck on the other. Rachel stared in distaste at the sofa before she settled in between them. She wasn't happy with her brother or the man who was her new husband at the moment.

Will sat down on the coffee table so that he could face all three of them at the same time. "I'm going to cut to the chase: you, Finn and Rachel, have managed to put us in a very difficult situation."

"You can say that again," Puck chimed in.

Will sent him a look. "Puck," he said pointedly. The younger man fell silent, but did so grudgingly. "As I was saying, this is something that we need to handle very delicately. We can't just have the two of you get a quick divorce."

That made Rachel's head snap up. "What? Why?" she demanded. She knew that this wasn't going to be easy, but she had no idea that they couldn't just make this go away. Finn just stared down at his hands in his lap, remaining silent as he waited for Will to reveal his plan of action.

"Finn just signed as quarterback with the Jets," Will pointed out. "That's a leader's position. He's twenty-six years old, and you're twenty-four, and people expect those who are your age to be past pulling stunts like this. Finn needs to be responsible. He's a role model to many kids. Do you know how many requests we've gotten for jerseys already? And Rachel, I know that you're an actress on Broadway. What would prospective directors think?"

Finn glanced at Rachel to see how she was reacting. Her brow was furrowed as she processed what Will was saying. She tugged on the hem of her rumpled blue dress and pushed her messy hair back from her shoulders. Finn knew that he should have been paying attention, but he couldn't help but notice how pretty Rachel was, even in her disheveled state.

"So what are you saying?" Rachel asked. She didn't like what Will was getting at. Rachel was currently starring in an off-Broadway production of _Beauty and the Beast_. There was even talk of them heading to Broadway as a revival, and Rachel didn't want to lose that. Finn, for his part, pulled himself from his musings just in time to see Will give him a cautious look before he glanced at Puck and Rachel nervously.

He talked slowly and calmly. "You're not going to like this," Will began. "But I honestly think that it's the best course for now."

"Just spit it out already!" Puck exclaimed.

Will took a deep breath. "Finn and Rachel need to stay married for at least six months."

* * *

"You do realize that you'll have to answer the phone eventually, right?"

Rachel didn't look at her brother as he approached. She folded her arms across her chest and looked away from the phone displaying her fathers' picture. Right now, she was playing by the mantra of if she ignored it, it didn't exist.

Unfortunately, the same couldn't be said for her new marriage.

"I just thought that I'd live in denial for a little while longer," Rachel said as she reached over and put her phone on silent. At least she wouldn't hear it go off every three minutes now.

Puck shook his head. "This isn't like you, Rachel."

"None of this is like me!" Rachel exclaimed. The comment really got to her. She knew that something serious had happened last night. She couldn't begin to explain why she had made the decisions that she had. "Did you ever think that I would up and marry a man that I barely know?"

Puck stared at her before he said, "I've done a lot of stupid shit, but I don't think any of it has ever come close to this."

"Please, Noah. Let's not forget the time you tried to steal that ATM. And you're not helping very much right now!"

"Do you even remember how you got to the club last night?" Puck asked.

Rachel glared at him. "Of course I remember how I got there! I didn't start drinking until much later that night, for your information." It was true. Now that Rachel thought about it, the last thing she remembered was sitting at the bar in the club with Finn a little after midnight. Somehow, whatever conversation they had been having had led to them getting married.

Rachel pushed that thought from her mind (and ignored the butterflies suddenly swooping in her stomach) as she thought back to the very beginning of her night. Unsurprisingly, it had a lot to do with her trouble-making best friend, Santana Lopez.

_"You need to stop moping, Berry."_

_ Rachel rolled her eyes and hugged her pillow more tightly to her chest. "He was basically parading around with the girl he had cheated on me with, Santana. I know it's been a month, and Brody and I didn't date for very long, but still."_

_ Santana gave her best friend a sympathetic look as she patted her back. "I know, Rachel," she said. Santana was fiercely protective of her friends. When she found out that Rachel's boyfriend of a month had been cheating on her the entire time, it had taken nearly all of their friends to keep her from going out and maiming the guy. "But I just don't get it."_

_ "Get what?"_

_ "I don't get why you let that guy get to you! He smelled weird and he was such a jackass, Rachel. Not only that, but he looked like a plastic doll. I may like the V, but I still can spot an attractive guy. Trust me, that jerk wasn't it."_

_ Rachel cracked a smile at Santana's string of insults before she sighed. "It's not that I'm really upset about the break up. It's more that I can't believe he was cheating on me for basically the entirety of our relationship and I didn't notice. Do you know how that feels?"_

_ "I can imagine that it would feel pretty shitty," Santana supplied. "Lucky for you, I have the exact thing to cheer you up."_

_ Rachel peered at her friend cautiously. "Like what?"_

_ Santana disappeared into Rachel's closest and rifled around in there for several long moments. She tossed garments over her head and out into the bedroom until she finally found what she was looking for. Santana reappeared holding a short, body-hugging blue dress with straps that crossed over the mostly open back._

_ "We're going to Las Vegas with your brother and his friends tomorrow," Santana declared. "And don't even try to say no. I already made sure that your brother booked us tickets. You're going to wear this dress when we go out and you're going, even if I have to drag you. You, Rachel Berry, are going to have fun this weekend."_

Puck cursed. "I knew I shouldn't have bought plane tickets for you and Lopez. But no, she just had to beg because she wanted to meet the cheerleaders."

"She flashed you, didn't she?" Rachel asked flatly. Whenever Santana wanted Puck to do something for them, she would flash him her breasts. Despite the fact that Puck knew that Santana was only interested in other women, it never failed to work.

Puck looked down. "I'm not proud of giving in."

Rachel's phone lit up again, though it emitted no sound. This time, Santana's picture popped up. Rachel sighed before she hit 'ignore' on the touch screen. She wasn't in the mood to talk to anyone, really. If she had her way, Puck wouldn't even be there right now.

Finn emerged from the bathroom. Given that they were still in his room, Finn had decided to take advantage of the fact and take a shower. He rubbed a towel over his wet hair. Rachel eyed him as he approached and tried to ignore how attractive he was. Finn was dressed in a pair of jeans and a white t-shirt. He had been abnormally quiet ever since Will had arrived.

"Are you alright?" Rachel asked before she could stop herself.

Finn looked up in surprise. He watched Rachel for a moment before he said, "I'm fine."

"But you haven't said anything."

Finn shrugged his shoulders. "What do you want me to say, Rachel? We're married. We have to stay married for at least six months. That's the way that it has to be."

For once, Puck wisely stayed silent.

"I guess we'll have to plan a few things out, then," Rachel stated.

Finn sighed tiredly. "Plan what?"

"Where we're going to live, when we're going to tell our parents, whether or not we're going to tell them what really happened, if we're going to do any interviews… there's so much that we need to think about, Finn!"

Finn gave her an incredulous look before he glanced to Puck. He held his hands up. "Don't look at me, man," Puck said. "She's always been like this."

"Rachel, I'm still hungover," Finn said. "So can we just put a stop on the planning for now and give it until I at least have something to eat? Will told us that we're stuck in this hotel room for the time being. I'm going to enjoy the peace and quiet before the madness starts."

"But we need to make sure that our stories match up!" Rachel knew that she and Finn didn't really have a choice. They were going to have to see this through. But Rachel Berry didn't half-ass anything. She was going to make sure that this was perfect and that no one would question their story. But she needed Finn to make sure that it worked. "We should start on it right now so we can practice for when people ask us questions."

Puck raised his hand. "I think we'd like to know what actually happened first before we start making up stories to cover it up."

Rachel glared at him. "Why are you still here?" she demanded. "Leave. Go back to your own room."

"But—"

"Leave!"

Puck scowled darkly at his little sister. He sent a glare Finn's way for good measure before he snatched his cell phone up and left the suite. He grumbled the entire time about ungrateful little sisters and dumbass best friends, but he still left anyway. Despite what people thought, Puck did have some couth. His little sister was all grown up now, and she wanted to figure this out on her own. He had to respect.

And as for Finn, well… Puck still reserved the right to beat the crap out of him if he did anything to his baby sister.

Meanwhile, back in the room, Finn and Rachel were in a standoff with each other. To Rachel's annoyance, Finn was still remaining quiet. What she really wanted to know was how much he remembered from the night before—and if he said anything, hopefully it might trigger something in her memory.

"Noah is right," Rachel said. "As much as I don't want to admit it. We need to figure out what really happened last night. Do you remember anything?"

Finn chanced another look at Rachel. She was still wearing her wrinkled blue dress from the night before. His eyes followed the straps that crossed over her shoulders and the way it hugged her body. Oh yes, did he remember things from the night before.

_Finn was flying high from his new contract with the Jets. He had wanted to play in the NFL for as long as he could remember, and his dream was finally coming true. Yes, he was aware of how cheesy that sounded, but he didn't care._

_ "Yo, Hudson!" Puck clapped Finn on the back and shoved a beer in his hand. "Have another drink and let's do some shots!"_

_ Puck was the one who had arranged this whole trip to Vegas and the part itself, so Finn figured that he might as well do it. What was the harm anyway? They could have one night of celebration before Finn buckled down and started training. He normally didn't party, so he figured that letting go and having fun for one night couldn't hurt._

_ They went to the bar and did their shots. Remaining there, both men turned to survey the party. It wasn't long before Puck caught sight of someone that made him frown. "Oh hell no," he muttered._

_ "What?" Finn asked._

_ "My little sister," Puck answered. "She's here and she's not wearing enough clothes. I knew I shouldn't have booked her and Santana tickets to come with us…" He trailed off and grumbled under his breath, but Finn wasn't paying attention anymore._

_ His eyes remained on Rachel. She was wearing a blue dress that hugged all of her curves and sky-high heels that made her legs look miles long. Her hair tumbled in soft waves down her shoulders, and she was laughing at something her friend was saying. Finn couldn't take his eyes off of her._

_ Rachel's friend Santana dragged her over to the bar and ordered several very strong drinks before she commanded Rachel to start drinking. Puck immediately started in on the Latina for trying to get his little sister drunk. Rachel, for her part, picked up one of the drinks and quickly downed it. Finn watched, impressed, as she reached for another one._

_ "Want to slow down there, Rach?" he asked as he went to stand next to her._

_ She smiled at him, her eyes playful. "I don't think you know me well enough to call me that yet," she teased._

_ Finn immediately picked up on Rachel's use of the word 'yet.' He gave her a half-smile. "We have all weekend," he said._

_ "That we do." Rachel passed him a drink as her eyes twinkled. She definitely liked Finn Hudson. "And just so you know, I've had a bad couple of days. I needed this drink, not to mention this trip. You're going to need to drink that if you want to catch up."_

_ Finn took a sip of the drink. "I think I can handle that." He had a feeling that he was going to get to know Rachel very well during this weekend._

Finally, Finn shrugged his shoulders. "We were at the club," he hedged. "And we were drinking"

"Obviously," Rachel deadpanned. She sighed before she gathered her hair up into a messy bun. Her bangs fell forward and she brushed them away from her forehead impatiently. Her phone lit up once again, and Finn could feel his buzzing in his pocket. Neither one of them had answered any of the calls from their family. They didn't want to deal with that, so they were both trying to put it off for as long as they could.

"This is really happening, isn't it?" Rachel whispered.

Finn nodded his head. "It really is."

Now what were they going to do?

* * *

**Author's Note: Thanks for reading!**


	2. you're the last thing my heart expected

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything. This chapter title comes from the song "Some Hearts" by Carrie Underwood.**

* * *

"Married? You're _married?!_"

Rachel winced and shifted in her seat. Next to her, Puck sniggered and didn't bother to try and hide it. She jabbed him hard in the side, satisfied when he let out a yelp of pain. Her big brother really was a pain in her butt sometimes, so she really didn't feel sorry at all. He was being no help at all in this interrogation from their fathers.

Rachel fiddled with the strings on her hoodie. She had changed into a pair of sweats after her short shower once they had got off the plane. "Well, I suppose so, yes."

"You _suppose_ so?" Leroy Berry was livid as he looked towards his husband. "Do something with her, Hiram," he demanded. "I can't deal with this right now."

Hiram had always been the calmer of the two men, but even he wasn't sure how he would handle their daughter's new nuptials. "Rachel, we're just trying to understand what happened."

Rachel sighed. Will had pretty much decided for Finn and Rachel that only their parents should really know the true story of what had happened. Rachel had been dreading this moment ever since she had realized that it would be necessary. But it had been about twenty-four hours since Finn and Rachel had woken up in the hotel room. She was tired from the long flight home, but she had to push that aside. Now was the time to come clean with her fathers.

"Papa, Daddy…" Rachel began. "I… I did something during that night in Las Vegas." She took a deep breath before she continued with her story. She kept the explanation as short as she possibly could, with only all of the necessary details. Her fathers didn't need to know more than was absolutely necessary.

By the time she was finished, Leroy's face was an interesting shade of purple and Hiram's mouth was hanging wide open as he tried to find his words. All was silent for several long, tense moments. Suddenly, Puck's barking laughter broke the quiet.

Leroy lifted a throw pillow and hit his son over the head with it. "It's not funny, Noah!" he scolded. Puck knew that he was being serious because Leroy never called him by his given name. Only Hiram and Rachel ever did that.

"Come on, Pop. What else are you going to do? Pretty much the only reaction to have is to laugh," Puck explained.

Rachel jabbed him with her index finger again. "That's not what you were saying this yesterday!" she exclaimed. "You were ready to kill Finn."

Puck started snickering again. "Yeah, but that was before I saw how Papa was ready to rip Finn's head off. _That's_ what's funny."

"You're horrible," Rachel stated. "Absolutely horrible."

Hiram finally managed to think of something to say. Staring at his daughter with wide eyes, he exclaimed, "Rachela, I can't believe you didn't let us plan your wedding!"

Leroy gave his husband an incredulous look. "Our daughter gets drunk and ends up married to some football player in Las Vegas and _that's_ what you decide to focus on?"

"Leroy, you know that I've had certain things about Rachel's wedding planned out. And she ended up getting married at some cheesy twenty-four hour chapel in Vegas! Excuse me for being a little put out by it." Hiram actually pouted, and Rachel sighed. Her papa was mad that she had gotten married, and her daddy was mad that he hadn't got to plan it. There was just no winning here.

Puck snorted. "You think that's bad? She hasn't even told you the best part yet."

Rachel snatched the throw pillow that her papa had discarded and hit Puck with it several times over the head and shoulders. "You are absolutely no help!" she yelled. "Stop interjecting!"

Leroy stepped between his son and daughter. He took the pillow away from Rachel and held it out of her reach in order to keep her from beating Puck with it. "What is that you still have to tell us, Rachel?" His voice was deadly calm and left no room for argument.

Rachel glared at Puck before she turned towards her fathers. She made her eyes go as wide as they possibly could. She may have been twenty-four years old, but she wasn't above pulling out the daddy's girl card. "It's a very delicate situation," Rachel said.

Leroy eyed her suspiciously. "I'm not going to like what you're about to say, am I?"

Rachel sighed heavily. She might as well get it over with, and fast. Taking the Band-Aid approach, Rachel quickly said, "Finn and I are staying married for at least six months."

Leroy and Hiram stared at their daughter in complete silence once again. This time, Puck didn't interrupt by laughing. It was made all the more serious because Finn and Rachel had to remain married. No matter what jokes were made, this was very real.

"So I can at least plan a reception?" Hiram suddenly asked.

"Hiram!" Leroy exclaimed. "Honestly!"

"What?" Hiram looked unashamed. In fact, he was grinning because he was so excited over the prospect of planning a wedding reception. "If Rachela has to keep up a ruse, we can at least throw a great party to help them out. This is serious, Leroy."

Leroy rubbed a hand through his thinning hair. He was sure that a few more grey ones had grown based on this conversation alone. "Fine. But I say that we meet this Finn Hudson's parents, first. "

Puck was grinning broadly. "This just keeps getting better and better."

Rachel balled up her fist and punched him as hard as she could. Puck laughed and pushed her back. Rachel went to hit him again (just because she was incredibly frustrated and her older brother happened to be an easy target), but Leroy caught her and held her back.

"I would be quiet if I were you," Leroy advised. "The last time I checked, Finn Hudson was supposedly your best friend. You planned this whole trip to Vegas and the party that night. Where were you when your little sister was off and getting married?"

"I am a grown woman!" Rachel protested shrilly. As she spoke, she was very aware that she actually sounded like an angry teenager once again. But that was beside the point. "I don't need Noah to babysit me!"

Leroy ignored her and turned to his son. "Well?"

To their surprise, Puck's cheeks turned red. Rachel smirked; for once, she finally had the upper hand on her big brother.

"He was too busy flirting with Quinn Fabray," Rachel teased.

Hiram was immediately interested by this information. "Oh really? And who is this Quinn Fabray?"

"She's one of the lawyers that the team hired," Rachel answered. "And she was at the party while we were in Las Vegas because one of her friends invited her. I'm sure that Noah was quite distracted by her, seeing as how he's been after her ever since she was hired."

"Thanks Rachel," Puck grumbled. He knew that he was going to be the subject of many questions now. Puck had never mentioned the crush he had on the blonde lawyer before. And since Hiram had been talking about grandchildren a lot lately, Puck had a feeling that he would be asked about Quinn a lot more.

She smirked at him. "Payback, brother dear."

Hiram clapped his hands together. "Well, I'm going to start making calls to the rest of the family. Leroy, you can see if you can get in contact with Finn's family. We have a get together to plan!"

Rachel, Leroy, and Puck shook their heads at Hiram's enthusiasm. This was going to be a long six months.

* * *

Rachel wrapped the fluffy towel around her body as she stepped out of the shower. Once she had made it home, she only had time for a quick shower due to her father's interrogation. She felt so much better now that she had a chance for a nap and long, hot shower.

Standing in front of the mirror, Rachel combed her wet hair away from her face. As she tilted her head to the side, Rachel caught site of one of the hickies on her neck. Her skin flushed, the blush diffusing all the way down to her chest when she realized that there was more than one. They were on her neck, her collarbone, and lining the edge of where her bra would have been. She was thankful that her long hair had covered her neck, but her papa would have gone completely ballistic if he had seen them.

Rachel couldn't believe that Finn Hudson had put so many marks on her skin. Even more than that, she couldn't believe that she didn't remember it happening. Tilting her head to the side, Rachel reached up with careful fingers and touched one of the marks on her neck.

Pressing on them triggered some memory in her mind. She remembered being pressed up against a wall as hot, feverish lips moved from hers down to her neck. Desire flooded Rachel's body, but she pushed past those hazy memories to try and fill in the missing blanks from before.

"_You should come dance with me."_

"_What?" Finn laughed as he gave Rachel an incredulous look. "No way. I'm not drunk enough to dance. In fact, I don't think I'll ever be that drunk."_

_Rachel giggled and grabbed one of Finn's large hands. She held it between both of her own and looked up at him, making her eyes go as wide as possible. She gave him a sweet smile before she said, "Please, Finn? For me?" She was so tired of feeling sad for herself. Here was Finn, and he liked her just as she liked him. She was going to make the most of this. And if she was lucky, whatever was going on between her and Finn might extend past this night._

_She and Finn had been talking for the past hour and a half. They had talked about anything and everything—their families, where they went to school, their childhoods, all of it. Rachel had found someone she could talk to this easily in a very long time._

_Finn sighed. He knew that was going to end up on that dance floor. In fact, Finn was already allowing Rachel to tug him out of his chair. Some fast club music that Finn didn't really care for was playing, but he forgot all about that as soon as Rachel started dancing with him._

_She turned to face away from him, pressing her behind against his front. Rachel grabbed Finn's hands and placed them on her waist. Finn wasn't a very good dancer, but he did his best to follow Rachel's movements. She didn't protest at all; in fact, it seemed like she was having a great time._

_Neither of them knew how long they had been on the dance floor. But it wasn't long before an announcement was being made for a karaoke competition to be started. Rachel immediately stopped her dancing and turned to face Finn._

"_Oooh!" she exclaimed. "Karaoke? I love karaoke! And I always win!"_

_Finn chuckled at her enthusiasm. "Do you really?"_

"_Of course," Rachel said confidently. "I'm a singer, Finn. Do you sing?"_

"_Uh… sometimes."_

"_Then we'll do a duet together!" When Finn still looked a little unsure, Rachel grabbed his face and pulled him down to her. She smiled at him before she pressed her lips to his in a hard, deep kiss. Her fingers slid into his hair, and she moaned when she felt his tongue trace her lips. When the need for air became too great, they broke apart._

"_So, Finn," Rachel tried again. "Will you do a duet with me?"  
_

_Finn could only nod his head in response._

Rachel couldn't help the smile that came on to her lips as she remembered kissing Finn. She had never imagined that it would lead to being married to him, but the chemistry between the two of them had been undeniable. Something had happened between them that night that Rachel couldn't even begin to explain.

She finally turned away from her reflection and pulled on the yoga pants and sweater she had decided to change into. Rachel planned on spending the remainder of the day in hiding before she had to face the rest of the world. Will had warned her that things were going to get pretty hectic, especially given how talked about Finn already was in the sports world.

At that current moment, Rachel knew that Will was drawing up some sort of plan to make sure that everything went smoothly over the next six months. There was so much that they had to think of—appearances that Finn and Rachel would need to make together, what apartment they would need to stay in… all of it.

For once, she allowed herself to think of her new husband. Rachel wondered what Finn was doing at that very moment.

* * *

Finn took a sip of his coffee and looked at his mother and stepfather. Carole and Burt Hummel stared back. Carole was watching him with wide eyes, and Burt just looked a little thrown off by the whole situation.

"So go ahead," Finn said after several long moments of silence stretched in front of them. He had already explained what had happened to his parents. Now he was just waiting for the reaction. "Lay it on me."

Burt blinked at Finn. "You got married."

"Yes, I did."

"Really. You got married. In a chapel in Las Vegas."

Finn cracked a smile. "I think we've already established that."

Burt balled up his napkin and threw it at his stepson. "I don't think that this is something to laugh about, Finn! You just signed with the Jets. What would they say if they found out about this?"

"They won't," Finn stated. "That's what Will's plan is all about."

"Oh, a six month marriage. I'm sure that will work out just fine." Burt turned to his wife. "Carole, do you have anything to add to this? You've been unusually quiet."

They were surprised when tears suddenly flooded Carole's eyes and she pressed a hand to her mouth. She took a few moments to collect herself before she said, "My little boy got married!"

Finn shook his head as Burt gave his wife an incredulous look. "Really, Carole?"

"What? It's true! Finny, you're married!"

"He got drunk and he got married," Burt pointed out. "I think that's a little different from what you had originally envisioned for him."

"Hey!" Finn waved his hands in front of his parents. "I'm sitting right here! I know that what happened wasn't exactly ideal. But it did and now we're just going to have to deal with it."

Burt studied him for a few moments before he nodded his head. "I must say, Finn. I'm impressed with the way that you're handling this."

Finn shrugged his shoulders. "There isn't really any use in flipping out about it. If we over react, it's not going to help anyone. I may not exactly remember making this decision, but I have to make the best of this."

Carole looked as if she were about to cry again. "Finny, I'm so proud of you. You're handling this so well. And you're married now!"

"Mom…" Finn didn't want to put a damper on how excited his mother was, but he had to. "I don't think a lot is going to pan out from this. Rachel and I are only staying married for six months and that's it."

But Carole didn't look at all put off by the news. Instead, she just smiled. "Burt, can you please go and see if you can look up Rachel's family house number? I'd like to set something up with them."

Burt still looked as if he couldn't quite believe that this was happening. But he nodded his head and did what his wife asked of him, disappearing into the living room to make the call. Carole moved to another chair closer to her son and reached for the coffee pot, refilling his mug.

"What, Mom?" Finn asked when he saw the look on her face. "I know you have something to say, so you should just say it now."

Carole knew her son very well. "Why do I get the feeling that you want something more with Rachel Berry than just what you're saying?"

Finn opened his mouth to protest, but his mother gave him a pointed look. He sighed and ran a hand through his hair before he said, "What am I supposed to do, Mom? I hadn't exactly planned on marrying her. I wanted to at least take her on a date, first."

"You remember more than you let on, don't you?" Carole asked. When Finn slowly nodded his head, she patted his hand. "I think you need to tell Rachel, sweetie. She deserves to know. I'm sure that this is a lot for her to deal with, too."

Finn rested his head on his hands. He felt better after his shower, and now he had some food in his stomach, but he still wasn't feeling one hundred percent. Once again, he resolved not to drink that much.

"You didn't see her when we woke up, Mom. She was so angry." Despite all of that, Finn could still feel the connection that they had. And there had been times when he thought that Rachel could feel it, too.

Carole stood up and gave her son a sympathetic look before she hugged him. "There might be more going on with Rachel than you know," she advised. "The two of you have to work together as a team for the next six months. You'll have to live together and put on a show for everyone in order to make this believable. You might want to try and find out a little bit about her, first."

"I'm twenty-six years old and I still come to you for advice when I have no idea what I'm doing," Finn said with a chuckle. He was lucky that he had a mother like Carole. He had a feeling that a lot of other parents wouldn't handle the news of his surprise marriage so well.

"I'm your mother, Finn," Carole said. "You're allowed to come to me for help whenever you want to. It's my job."

It was then that Burt came back into the kitchen. To Finn and Carole's surprise, he had an amused look on his face. He took the seat next to Carole once again before turning to Finn.

"It seems that the Berry family was trying to reach us, as well," Burt revealed. "They immediately agreed to meet us for lunch tomorrow. Hiram even mentioned something about using the time to plan a reception for the two of you."

As Burt started laughing, Finn dropped his head onto his folded arms and groaned. This was going to be a very long six months.

* * *

Hiram took a seat next to her daughter and gave her a reassuring smile. "I talked to your papa, you know. I made him promise that he was going to be nice. I don't know how well he'll listen, but at least he'll try."

Rachel gave her daddy a weak smile in return. She fiddled with the hem of her dress and tried to calm her nerves without much success. This would be the first time she had seen Finn since they had woken up in the hotel room together. Even more than that, this was the first time that she was going to see Finn since she remembered kissing him. It was sure to bring back a flood of emotions that she wasn't sure that she was prepared to deal with.

"Relax, Rachel," Hiram advised. "It's all going to be alright."

Rachel nodded her head and stood up, smoothing out her dress. They knew that shouldn't go out in public yet (the paparazzi were being extremely dedicated in their quest to find out about what was going on), so they were having lunch at the Berry household. To Rachel's dismay, Puck would be attending as well.

Before Rachel could respond, there was a knock on the front door. Rachel didn't want to be the one to answer it, but she didn't want either of her fathers or her older brother to do it either. So she ran to the front door and yanked it open before Leroy could.

A kind looking woman and a man with a baseball cap on were standing in front of her. Rachel could only assume that these people were Finn's parents. Behind them was Finn himself, and he was wearing a black sweater and jeans. The sleeves were pushed up, revealing his impressive forearms. Rachel shook her head a little and forced herself to focus on something besides how attractive Finn Hudson was.

"Hello, Mr. and Mrs. Hummel," Rachel greeted. "How are you?"

"Please, Rachel," Carole said as she smiled. "Call me Carole. And we're fine, thank you."

Rachel stepped aside to allow the family to enter. Finn greeted her with a half-smile that made her heart skip a beat. She gave him a smile in return and stood next to him as she waited for her fathers and older brother to appear.

She didn't have to wait very long. Hiram and Leroy entered the hallway by the front door with Puck following close behind them. Thankfully, Hiram gave the newcomers a welcoming smile.

"Carole and Burt! It's so nice to meet you," he said. "Welcome to our home!"

"Hi," Leroy added shortly.

Hiram gave his husband a pointed look. "Could you try and be a little more…" he muttered before he trailed off. He figured that Leroy could fill the blanks in on his own.

But Leroy was being stubborn. "Be a little more what?" he demanded.

Hiram just smiled again and patted his husband's back. Turning back towards the other set of parents, he suggested, "Why don't we head into the dining room? We have lunch all set up for everyone."

Carole and Burt followed Hiram into the formal dining room of the Berry house, but Leroy stepped in front of Finn, effectively blocking him. Puck snickered behind his father. Whatever was about to happen was going to be very funny, he was sure of it.

Leroy crossed his arms across his chest and stared at Finn. Leroy was tall, but Finn was just a little bit taller than him. Still, Finn took a step back as Leroy stared him down. The older man was certainly intimidating.

Leroy still didn't say anything, so Finn decided to introduce himself. "I'm Finn Hudson," he said. Rachel couldn't help but be impressed over the fact that Finn's voice remained strong and steady as he faced off against her father.

"I know. You're the man who married my daughter," Leroy stated.

"Well, I…" Finn didn't really know what to say to that, because it wasn't as if that statement was untrue. "I guess I did."

Rachel shook her head and stepped in between her father and the man that was now her husband. "Papa, stop it," she said sharply. "Leave Finn alone. Let's just go into the dining room and have a nice lunch, alright?"

Leroy stared Finn down for another long moment before he turned and disappeared into the dining room. Finn exhaled loudly and his shoulders dropped in relief. He looked down at Rachel and gave her that adorable smile again.

"Thanks," he muttered.

"It was no problem," Rachel said. She twirled a strand of her loose hair around her fingers before she said, "You know, I remembered a little more about last night."

"Oh yeah?" Finn looked intrigued. "What was it?"

Rachel didn't really know where to begin. She couldn't start off with the dancing they had done (because she had basically grinded on Finn), and she didn't want to be the first one to say anything about the kiss. Instead, she said, "I remember asking you to do karaoke with me."

To Rachel's surprise, Finn's eyes widened. "Really?" he asked. "Do you… do remember what we sang?"

Rachel took careful not of Finn's reaction. Biting her lip, she tried to think back to that karaoke competition two nights ago. There had to be some sort of link with what had happened.

_"What song are you going to sing?" one of the waiters asked. He was the one who was in charge of the karaoke competition. It had been easy for Rachel to find him and demand that she and Finn be the next in the contest._

_ "Do you have any Broadway classics?" Rachel asked, but Finn shook his head._

_ Taking her hand, he pulled her towards the book that held the titles of all the songs. "No way are we doing any Broadway songs, Rach. No offense, or anything."_

_ "What did you want to sing, then?" Rachel asked._

_ Finn began to flip through the booklet, scanning the songs. Most of them were bad eighties pop songs, which was to be expected. But then he fell upon a song by a favorite band from his childhood, and he grinned._

_ "That one." Finn pointed to the song title._

_ Leaning into Finn's side, Rachel took a look at the page. When she saw the one Finn was looking at, she smiled and reached up to kiss him again. "That's perfect," she said when she broke away._

_ They both climbed onto the stage, and the beginning chords of Journey's "Faithfully" began. Finn began singing, and Rachel watched him with wide eyes and lips parted in surprise. She didn't think someone's voice had ever affected her so much._

_ Thankfully, Rachel didn't miss her cue to start singing. When she finished her verse, Finn began to sing with her. Their voices mingled beautifully, and something happened then. Some kind of connection was formed. It was something so undeniable and pure._

_ When they had finished their song, Finn and Rachel were nearly standing chest to chest. As the last note rang out, Finn grabbed Rachel around the waist and hauled her up to kiss him._

_ Somehow, Finn and Rachel managed to make their way off the stage while still remaining attached at the lips. Finn pressed her up against the nearest wall. One hand slid under the hem of Rachel's dress, his fingers dancing over her thigh. Rachel's fingers locked in the hair at the nape of his neck. She moaned against his lips and pressed herself closer to him._

_ Finn pulled back from her, his breathing heavy. He stared into her doe eyes before he brought one hand up to cup her cheek. Rachel slid her hand to cover his against her face, and she smiled._

_ The words escaped from Finn before he could stop himself. "Marry me."_

_ Rachel's eyes grew as wide as saucers. Her lips parted in surprise and she stared at Finn for several long moments. Finn stared right back at her; he wasn't taking away his proposition._

_ Rachel stared into his amber orbs. What she saw there was complete sincerity and something else that she couldn't name. Her answer escaped from her lips on a whisper: "Yes."_

"We… we sang together?" Rachel gaped at Finn. "We sang together and then you proposed to me?"

Finn gave her a sheepish look as he rubbed the back of his neck. "Uh… It seemed like the thing to do at the time."

Rachel blinked. "Really, Finn?"

"Do I have to remind you that you said yes?"

Rachel fell silent. She had said yes. At the moment, she didn't really know why. But after singing with Finn, she had agreed to marry him. Whatever connection she and Finn had went beyond anything she had ever imagined.

Rachel sighed and combed her fingers through her hair. She looked over at Finn once before she turned towards the dining room. "We should go and see what our parents are talking about," she said quietly.

Finn watched her go. He sighed heavily and hoped that this lunch would go smoothly. This was the first obstacle of many that they would have to tackle.

* * *

"Rachel Berry, you are such a bitch!"

Rachel groaned and didn't look away from the mirror. She was currently trying to concentrate on applying her makeup correctly. "Santana, I have nothing to say to you."

Santana jabbed Rachel in the arm that she currently wasn't using. "I can't believe that you got married without me there as your maid of honor!"

"It wasn't like we planned this out, Santana. And I don't even remember the wedding." Rachel paused and turned to glare at her best friend. "Which is largely your fault, by the way."

Santana held her hands up. "Hey. I ordered the drinks, but you were the one that imbibed them. How was I supposed to know that you were going to get drunk and up and marry some football player?"

Rachel didn't bother to dignify that with an answer. She had something to prepare for, after all. Santana opened her mouth to say something else, but a knock at the door interrupted her.

"Can you please answer that?" Rachel asked.

Surprisingly, Santana went without argument. Rachel had just finished touching up her makeup when she heard her friend explain loudly, "Well look here! It's Berry's new husband! Hey Rachel, is your name Rachel Hudson now?"

Rachel's cheeks turned bright red. She took a deep breath to calm herself down before she went out into her living room. There, Finn and Will were standing there with Santana. She was smirking and Finn was trying not to look at Rachel, most likely because of the question that Santana had just asked.

Will was the one to answer. "For all intents and purposes, Rachel is now Rachel Hudson. At least, she is for the next six months."

"You're going to have to get your stuff re-embroidered, Berry," Santana stated.

Rachel shook her head. "You're exactly like my brother. You're no help at all. However, Finn and I have somewhere that we need to be. So I'll see you later, Santana. And don't even think about staying in my apartment. You'll end up breaking something like you always do."

Santana just smiled before she hugged her best friend tightly. Rachel hugged her in return; she knew that this was Santana's way of apologizing for her part in the situation. Once she was gone, Rachel turned back towards Finn and Will.

"I suppose we should get going," she said.

Will nodded his head. He led the two young adults from Rachel's apartment. The interview that they would be giving had been set up by Will with a good friend of his, and their setting was at a small café. It would be controlled and easy, and Rachel and Finn had already rehearsed their story at least one hundred times. They could handle this.

Ten minutes later, they had arrived. Will walked into the café without hesitation, but Finn and Rachel both paused at the same time. They looked at each other, then at the restaurant, and then back at each other once again.

Rachel bit her lip in apprehension. Finn took a deep breath before he reached his hand out, palm facing up towards Rachel. She glanced at his hand and then up at his face; Finn's amber eyes were warm and trusting. So Rachel slid her hand into Finn's and wrapped her fingers around his strong palm.

Together, they walked into the café.

* * *

**Author's Note: The response to this has been so amazing. I'm completely blown away by the support. Thank you all for you kind and wonderful words, because it seriously means so much. Thanks for reading!**


	3. can't stop this thing we started

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything. This chapter title comes from the song "Can't Stop This Thing We Started" by Bryan Adams.**

* * *

Rachel studied the photograph that had been taken of her and Finn to accompany the article of their first interview together since the wedding. It was a candid and neither Finn nor Rachel had realized that it had been taken. The longer Rachel looked at the picture, the faster her heart thumped in her chest.

Finn and Rachel were looking at each other in the picture. Finn had that adorable half smile playing on his lips, and Rachel was gazing up at him with a look that could only really be called enamored. The camera was angled in such a way that viewers could see Finn's hand resting on Rachel's knee. On top of the table, Rachel played with the fingers of Finn's other hand. It was an extremely intimate and sweet picture, and it really looked as if Finn and Rachel were in love.

It tugged at her heart. Their interview had been romantic and sweet. People were already sending well wishes to them. Rachel couldn't help but feel guilt bubble in her stomach because of the way they were deceiving people in order to keep them from thinking that they were irresponsible.

But then Rachel would look at the picture in the magazine again, and her guilt would turn into butterflies. There was just something about Finn that Rachel couldn't begin to explain. She had only been so angry when she first woke up the morning because she had been surprised.

Rachel shook her head and pushed those thoughts away when she heard the front door open. She and Finn had to keep this ruse going for six months and then it would be over. The last thing Rachel needed was to start developing even deeper feelings for Finn.

They had just finished moving Rachel's belongings into the new apartment that Finn had. In order to keep up with this marriage, Finn and Rachel had to move in together. It would have been pretty obvious if Finn and Rachel kept going to separate apartments when they weren't together. This new apartment was large and beautiful (and, if Rachel was being honest with herself, it was exactly what she had imagined for herself). It had a lot of space as well, so Finn and Rachel wouldn't be on top of each other the whole time.

"That's everything," Finn said as he shut the door behind him. "Did you need help with moving any furniture in your room?"

"I'll be alright," Rachel said. "Thank you, though."

Finn nodded his head and went to head into the kitchen to find something to eat. As he passed, he noticed the magazine that Rachel had open in front of her. He stopped to look at the picture of the two of them. To Rachel's surprise, a smile formed on his lips.

"That's a nice picture," he noted. He turned his smile towards Rachel before he continued into the kitchen.

Rachel stared after him with wide eyes. Unconsciously, she began to spin the ring on the third finger of her left hand. What was Finn Hudson doing to her? Rachel took a deep breath before she realized that she was playing with her rings. She snatched her right hand away before she lifted her left hand to study the rings.

_"Can't you let me see?"_

_ Finn shook his head and chuckled at the pout on Rachel's lips. He wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her against him before he kissed her. "I think I can handle it, Rach. Don't you trust me?"_

_ Rachel beamed at him. "I'm marrying you, aren't I?"_

_ "You are." Finn kissed her again. "So just let me go and pick out the rings, okay?"  
_

_"Fine." Rachel stretched on her tiptoes to kiss Finn again before she sent him off. "But pick a pretty one, alright?"_

_ Finn went into the jewelry store with purpose. Normally, he would have felt a little nervous about making sure that he would pick the perfect ring. However, the alcohol stopped him from feeling nervous as he scanned the different types of rings in front of him. He had no doubt in his mind that he would pick the perfect set of rings for Rachel, and it wasn't long before he found the right one. As soon as he saw it, he knew that it was the right ring for Rachel._

_ Finn immediately paid for them and brought them back out to Rachel. He kept the matching wedding band in his pocket but hid the engagement ring in the palm of his closed hand. He took Rachel's hand with the other and rubbed his thumb over her knuckles._

_ "Finn, what are you doing?" Rachel asked with a laugh._

_ "I didn't have the ring the first time I proposed," Finn explained. "So I thought that I would do it the right way this time."_

_ Rachel placed her tiny had over the one Finn had wrapped around the ring. "You don't need to do it again," she said sincerely. "Your first proposal was perfect." Her eyes were wide and earnest as she looked up at Finn._

_ He gazed down at his new fiancée with warm eyes before he suddenly kissed her again. When he pulled back, Finn reached for Rachel's left hand and slid the ring onto her finger. She gasped when she caught sight of it._

_ "Oh, Finn!" she exclaimed. "It's so beautiful." She held her hand up and watched the ring sparkle in the light. It really was perfect. "But it's too much. Are you sure?"_

_ "Of course I'm sure," Finn said. His words held a double meaning; he was sure about the ring and he was sure about marrying Rachel. "Are you sure?" he asked in turn._

_ Rachel didn't hesitate to nod her head. She reached and placed her hands on either side of Finn's face. He smiled when he felt the cool metal of her ring pressing gently against his skin. She kissed him deeply before she murmured against his lips, "I'm absolutely sure."_

_ Finn reached for Rachel's hand again. "Let's go find a chapel, then."_

_ The young couple raced off to make good of Finn's proposal. Neither could deny the excitement coursing through them, but they could both feel something else; something much, much deeper and more intense that neither knew how to name._

It didn't escape Rachel's notice that Finn had picked out the perfect ring for her. It had only been about a week since they had returned from Las Vegas, but Rachel put her rings on in the morning without a second thought now.

Rachel knew that Finn also knew his ring every day. She wondered if it was part of his daily routine as well, but she forced herself to push those thoughts away.

Instead, Rachel disappeared into her room and decided to put her energy into rearranging her room. It would be a good way to take her mind off of what was happening… because Rachel couldn't even be sure of it herself.

* * *

"_FINN HUDSON!_"

Finn winced and held the cellphone away from his ear. He could still hear his brother's shrill screaming, so he waited until it finished before he pressed the phone back to his ear.

"Are you finished yet?" Finn asked in a slightly exasperated tone.

"_NO, I'M NOT FINISHED YET!_"

Finn sighed. "Kurt. Can you stop? I don't need you freaking out."

"_I'M NOT FREAKING OUT!_"

"You're still yelling."

There was a dramatic sigh on the other end of the line before Kurt Hummel finally repeated, "_I'm not freaking out._"

Finn shook his head even though his brother couldn't see him. It was more the principle of the thing. Sometimes, Kurt just gave him a really big headache. "Dude, there's no way that I'm letting you meet her if you're going to be like this."

"_You need to let me meet her,_" Kurt Hummel-Anderson snapped. "_She's my new sister in law. You didn't even tell us that you were dating someone, Finn. How are we supposed to approve of her?_"

"Don't do that," Finn immediately said. "Don't scare her off. Rachel is my wife, Kurt." The words rolled off Finn's tongue almost effortlessly. He tried not to think about it too much, but he supposed it was a good thing. The lie was supposed to be convincing, after all.

Kurt didn't sound very apologetic. "_Finn, I can't believe that you got married without telling any of us. Do you realize that there was so much planning that I wanted to do?_"

Finn rolled his eyes. "You sound like Mom. And just so you know, one of Rachel's fathers was upset that he didn't get to plan the wedding. So you're going to have to fight him for that one."

"_Whatever,_" Kurt said dismissively. "_I just wanted you to know that Blaine and I will be by later tomorrow with Penny. We'll bring lunch._"

"Kurt, stop trying to ambush her!" Finn exclaimed. He didn't know how Rachel was going to deal with his slightly insane brother. That was more than he would ever wish on anyone.

"_I'm not ambushing her. And since she's your wife, she should want to meet us._"

Finn bit back a curse. Kurt was right. When Will had come up with the plan for the next six months, he had pretty much decided that the only people who would know the truth were Finn and Rachel's parents, and Puck and Santana (Santana only knew because Rachel had reasoned that if Finn's best friend knew, then so should hers. Never mind the fact that Finn and Puck still weren't on the greatest of terms).

So that meant that Finn had to keep this huge secret from his brother. When it really came down to it, that was probably a good thing since Kurt was pretty much incapable of keeping his mouth shut. So to the rest of their friends and families, Finn and Rachel had to keep this lie going.

"Fine," Finn said shortly. "I guess I'll see you guys tomorrow." Honestly, Finn was counting on Blaine to keep Kurt somewhat calm. And he loved seeing Penny, his niece, so that would be nice. Hopefully the fact that their daughter would be there would keep Kurt from acting out too much.

Rachel came into the kitchen, where Finn had been sitting. He pointed to the takeout boxes he had ordered for dinner, and Rachel picked one up and gave him a grateful smile. Finn took another moment to say goodbye to his brother before he hung up the phone.

"Are you alright?" Rachel asked as she leaned against the kitchen counter. She plucked a vegetable out of the lo mein in her carton with her chopsticks and popped it into her mouth. "You look extremely tense."

Finn put his phone on silent and slid it across the counter so he didn't have to deal with anymore calls from anyone. "I'm fine," he said. "Uh, just so you know, my brother and his family are coming over for lunch tomorrow. They want to meet you."

"Really?" Rachel looked thoughtful for a moment. "Should we add your brother to the list of family members that are angry with us for getting married, or is he alright with it?"

"I don't think he's decided yet," Finn admitted. "But I made him promise to keep an open mind."

Rachel laughed. "I don't think he can be as bad as my grandmother. She threatened to disown me when she found out that I had a quickie wedding in Las Vegas. I think we can handle you brother and his family."

"You should talk about Broadway," Finn advised. "Kurt loves that. He says that he's a 'serious journalist,' or whatever, but he got his start reviewing different shows. It'll be fine."

"You seem more worried than I am," Rachel pointed out.

Finn shrugged his shoulders. "Kurt might have started our conversation by yelling at me for a while through the phone. He has a tendency to be a little judgmental. But his husband and their daughter are coming along, too. I'm kind of hoping they'll act as buffers."

"Oooh!" Rachel clapped her hands together excitedly. "They have a daughter?"

"Yeah, her name is Penny. She's two years old. Speaking of, I should go pick something up for her before they come tomorrow. She's in her fairy princess stage and Kurt hates it when I buy her those huge sparkly tutus, so of course I try to do it as much as I can."

"Can I go with you?" Rachel asked. "I'd love to pick out something for her as well."

Finn was surprised by her offer to accompany him, but he smiled and nodded his head. "Sure. When you're finished with your dinner, we can head out."

"Thank you for this, by the way," Rachel said.

Finn shrugged his shoulders again. "It wasn't a big deal."

But Rachel kind of thought that it was. It meant that Finn paid enough attention to her to know what she ordered from takeout and thought about her enough to order something for her when he did. Butterflies swooped in her stomach again, but this time she didn't push them away. She just smiled at Finn.

* * *

"I can't believe she got us tickets to her show!" Kurt exclaimed as he bounced his daughter on his lap.

Finn gave his brother an amused look. "Well, I'm glad that you 'approve of her,' Kurt. And she only had to bribe you with tickets."

Finn had been right. When Rachel and Kurt had first met, they had immediately bonded over their shared love of Broadway. Blaine, of course, was easy to get along with, and Rachel had bonded with Penny immediately. By the end of the lunch, Rachel was inviting them to her show at the end of the week.

They had already decided that Finn was going to make an appearance at that show. He had to, since he was now the supportive husband and this was the way that Rachel made her living. It had worked perfectly, and the paparazzi had several photographs of Finn dropping Rachel off at the theater before her show.

Now it was over, and Finn, Kurt, and Blaine were gathering up their things to meet Rachel backstage. When she found them, she had already changed out of her costume into a pair of jeans and a loose, light green blouse. Finn reached for her hand and kissed her cheek, as was their custom when they greeted each other out in public.

"You were fantastic, Rachel," Blaine complimented.

She grinned at him as she greeted her in-laws with hugs. "Thank you! I'm so glad that you enjoyed the show."

"It will be on Broadway very soon, Rachel," Kurt declared. "And I know what I'm talking about."

"But we should get going," Blaine added. He hoisted his sleepy little daughter up into his arms. "This little one needs to be getting to bed."

"We'll see you later, then," Finn said.

"Thanks for coming!" Rachel called after them as the little family went to leave through the front of the theater. Finn and Rachel left through the back hand in hand. Hopefully, they would be able to avoid any photographers if they went that way.

But Rachel didn't count on who she would run into back there.

"Rachel, it doesn't seem like your show was up to the caliber that it normally is," Brody Weston stated. He had his arm wrapped around a large-chested blonde girl. Rachel recognized her immediately; it was the girl that Rachel had caught Brody in bed with.

Rachel tensed and refused to dignify Brody with a response. She didn't want to engage him, so she planned on walking right by him. Finn, on the other hand, had no idea who this was or what was going on.

"Rachel's show was amazing," Finn said as his hand tightened around hers. He had automatically disliked this other guy on sight, and the way he was speaking to Rachel wasn't helping matters. "So I don't know what you're talking about."

Brody shook his head. "It didn't seem quite up to par. Rachel, that might be because you've been getting yourself into some trouble lately." He looked pointedly at Finn.

That comment irked Rachel to no end. Finn was a better man that Brody could ever hope to be, and she wouldn't stand for him insulting Finn in that way. She moved forward to confront Brody, but Finn held fast to her hand.

"Don't speak to my husband like that," Rachel snapped.

"Rachel, who is this?" Finn asked. He pulled her back and wrapped his arm around her shoulders, holding her against him. Rachel relaxed into his embrace and placed one hand on his chest.

"This is Brody Weston, my jackass of an ex-boyfriend," Rachel stated. "And that blonde tramp on the other side of him is the woman I caught him in bed with."

Finn had never heard Rachel curse before, so he knew that she wouldn't do it without good reason. He couldn't believe that someone would ever treat her as badly as this Brody guy had. Putting two and two together, Finn realized that this is what Rachel must have been so upset about that night in Las Vegas.

"Don't act like it was some big slight, Rachel," Brody said. "You weren't giving me what I wanted. And since you married this oaf pretty quickly, I doubt that it was really a big deal."

Rachel's mouth dropped open in anger. Finn, for his part, wanted to pummel this asshole's face in. But he had another, better idea (and he would save the punching for later).

Without a word, Finn brought his hand up to Rachel's cheek and cupped it, turning her face towards his. He took a moment to stare into her eyes before he brought his mouth down over hers, kissing her deeply. Finn wrapped his other arm around Rachel's waist and pulled her flush against him, his fingers spreading over the small of her back.

Brody rolled his eyes at their display and tugged his girlfriend along. Finn and Rachel hadn't even noticed their departure. Finn backed Rachel into the wall of the theater, one hand buried in her hair. Rachel's arms were wrapped around his neck with her body pressed against his and straining to get closer.

Eventually, the kiss ended and Finn rested his forehead against Rachel's. They both struggled to catch their breath as they thought about what had just happened. Rachel's eyes remained closed and her tiny fists were clenched in his t-shirt.

"Sorry," Finn murmured after several long moments. He hadn't really meant to press Rachel against the wall like that, but it wasn't like she had protested. Slowly, the grip she had on his shirt loosened and Rachel's eyes fluttered open.

She stared into his eyes and a beat passed before she spoke. "Don't be." And that was all she said on the matter.

Finn stepped back and held his hand out for Rachel's. He half expected Rachel to brush him off, but she slid her hand into his and wrapped her tiny fingers around his palm. They walked back out onto the street. By that time, the photographers had disappeared but Finn and Rachel continued to hold hands anyway.

"I'm sorry that that guy was such an ass to you," Finn murmured about a block from their apartment building.

"I'm sorry that I dated him in the first place," Rachel said in response. "Thankfully, it wasn't a very long relationship. I was more upset about the fact that he had led me on for so long and I hadn't realized it."

Finn squeezed Rachel's hand. "Well if you need me to kick his ass, I will."

Rachel laughed. "It doesn't really matter anymore." Looking up at Finn with sincerity shining in her eyes, she added, "I'm much happier now."

* * *

Rachel sighed as she pulled her hairbrush through her long locks. She turned to inspect her reflection in the mirror; she was wearing a pair of jeans and a smaller version of Finn's Jets jersey. Today was the first day that she would go and support Finn at a game.

She was sighing because she had just gotten off the phone with her daddy. He had taken the planning of the reception that he was throwing for Finn and Rachel entirely upon himself. Somehow, he had roped Kurt into the planning as well. At any rate, neither Finn nor Rachel had any say in what was going to happen. Even more than that, they were keeping it a secret from her. Rachel didn't know how they were going to pull this off (the reception was in two weeks), but they had simply told her not to worry.

A knocking began at the front door of the apartment, and it was loud and never-ending. Rachel couldn't help but laugh as she set her hairbrush down. She knew that it was Santana at the door, demanding entrance. Rachel hadn't wanted to go to the game by herself, so she had invited her best friend along (and had made her promise to behave at the same time).

When Rachel opened the door, Santana greeted her with, "Hey, Berry-Hudson! You ready to go now, or what?"  
Rachel's smile grew at the mention of her new surname, but she did her best to hide it. Of course Santana, as her best friend, noticed it immediately and chose to comment on it.

"What's that smile for?" she demanded. "It's because I called you Hudson, isn't it? Good Lord, you're in love with him."

"I'm not in love with him!" Rachel immediately protested. The blush coloring her cheeks said otherwise, however.

Santana rolled her eyes. "You're such a fucking liar, Berry-Hudson." When Rachel smiled again, Santana pointed a finger at her. "There! You did it again!"

"Stop!" Rachel pushed on Santana's shoulder to get her to shut up before she shouldered her purse and locked the apartment behind her. "It doesn't even matter. This will all be over in a little under six months, anyway."

"It does matter," Santana pointed out. "It matters because you're falling in love with the Jolly Green Giant. Just… be careful, Rachel." Santana was nothing if not fiercely loyal to her friends. She didn't want her best friend to get hurt.

"I'll be very careful," Rachel said. But her voice didn't hold much conviction. Yes, she was able to admit to herself that she had a (huge) crush on Finn. But she didn't want to acknowledge that it was moving to love just yet. After all, it had only been two and a half weeks since they had returned from Las Vegas.

But she had agreed to marry Finn within just hours of knowing him. Rachel knew there was some deeper reason for that—one that she wasn't ready to admit to just yet.

"Let's go," Rachel added before Santana could say anything else. "We don't want to be late."

Half an hour later, they were settled into the special box that was set aside for the family of the players. Rachel had lost count of how many times she had been photographed already, and she hadn't even seen Finn yet.

It was then that the team entered the field to much applause. Of course, the cameras got a shot of Finn turning to find Rachel in the stands. He waved before he pressed his fingers to his lips and extended them towards Rachel.

Her cheeks flushed pink, but Rachel returned the gesture. The grin on Finn's face was infectious, and the applause only increased when the exchange was replayed on the big screen. When the camera moved so that it was just Rachel displayed on the big screen, she gave a little wave. The camera switched back to Finn, who was now standing with Puck. Rachel stifled a laugh when Puck had to force a smile for the audience. It served him right for all of the comments she and Finn had to put up with for the past two and a half weeks.

The game commenced then, and even though Rachel knew absolutely nothing about football, she was still on the edge of her seat the entire time. She cheered every time Finn had the ball, jumping out of her seat much to the amusement of the rest of the crowd.

Rachel cheered louder than anyone else when the Jets won their game. While Finn and the rest of the team were celebrating their victory, Rachel began to head down to the field to join Finn for the post-game interview. Will had thought that it was a good idea for her to be present for at least one of them, just so that Rachel could show her support.

"Hey, Rach," Finn greeted with that adorable half smile on his face. He wrapped an arm around her shoulders and was careful not to pull her too close to his sweaty body. But Rachel didn't care. She tucked herself into his embrace and rested her hand on his chest.

Aware of all the cameras focused on them, Finn looked at Rachel once and then his eyes drifted down to her lips. Understanding his meaning, Rachel nodded her head slightly. As Finn moved closer to her, Rachel's heart began to thump uncontrollably in her chest. Her whole body felt like it was going to burst at the thought of kissing Finn again.

Rachel stretched on her tiptoes just as Finn's lips touched hers. As it always seemed to with them, Finn and Rachel's kiss turned into more than just a mere brush of lips. Rachel's tiny fist curled into the fabric of Finn's jersey as his free hand fell to her hip and pulled her against him. His tongue traced her lips before the flashing of several cameras caught their attention.

Finn ended the kiss with another quick peck against Rachel's lips. He kept Rachel tucked against him and she smoothed the jersey she had wrinkled as yet another blush tinted her cheeks. What was Finn Hudson doing to her? She didn't even know.

"You two seem like you're very in love," a reporter called out.

"We are," Rachel replied with a bright smile.

"And it was quite the whirlwind romance," another reporter added. "Very quick."

Finn shrugged his shoulders and flashed one of his adorable, disarming smiles. "When you know, you just know."

Their answers were quick and easy and sincere. It wasn't long before the reporters stopped asking about Finn and Rachel's relationship and started talking about the game. Meanwhile, Rachel was off in her own little world, thinking about the way Finn's lips had felt on hers.

Keeping her hand resting against his chest, Rachel could feel something protruding under his jersey. With a furrowed brow, Rachel slipped her fingers under the edge of Finn's jersey and pulled on the chain she found there until it came into view. Her heart stuttered in her chest when she saw his wedding band hanging from the chain, and another memory suddenly flashed through her mind.

_"Rachel Berry, do you take this man to be your lawfully wedded husband?"_

_ Rachel giggled and squeezed Finn's hands. She was standing in some cheesy twenty-four hour chapel, wearing a short little veil with her dark blue dress and was actually about to get married. Even considering all of that, Rachel didn't care. She wanted this._

_ "I do," she said._

_ "And Finn Hudson, do you take this woman to be your lawfully wedded wife?"_

_ Finn gazed at her with his warm amber eyes. It was his turn to squeeze her hands as he spoke. "I do," he said._

_ The celebrant smiled before he said, "I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride."_

_ The words were barely out of the celebrant's mouth before Finn grabbed Rachel around the waist and pressed his lips to hers. He dipped her back and Rachel laughed against his lips as she wrapped her arms around his neck. It had happened._

_ Finn Hudson and Rachel Berry—now Hudson—were married._

* * *

**Author's Note: Thank you so much for all of the wonderful reviews! I'm completely in awe. :) Thanks for reading!  
**


	4. you make my heart beat faster

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything. This chapter title comes from the song "Faster" by Matt Nathanson.**

* * *

"So, would you consider wearing a wedding dress to the reception?"

Rachel was very close to maiming both Kurt Hummel-Anderson and her father.

She sucked in a deep, calming breath. "I've already had my wedding, Kurt," she said once she felt that she wouldn't scream. This planning was seriously driving her insane. Normally, she was all for a fun family party—especially one that was going to be all about her (and Finn)—but this just wasn't that fun anymore. Rachel almost felt as if this reception wouldn't even really be about her and Finn.

"I know," Kurt stated with a role of his eyes. "But you wore some dark blue party dress. That's hardly appropriate wedding attire, Rachel. You _need_ a wedding dress. We have to go shopping!"

Rachel shook her head. "Kurt, I'm not wearing some huge wedding dress."

Secretly, Rachel wanted nothing more than to wear a gorgeous wedding dress. But this was just a reception (without a ceremony), and it wasn't like it was going to matter anyway. Once again, Rachel was reminded of the lie that she and Finn were currently living.

It had been a month since that night in Las Vegas, and things had actually been going pretty well. Finn and Rachel got along very well and while they had the occasional spat about laundry, dishes, or how Finn kept tripping over the shoes Rachel left by the front door, things had been pretty smooth. And to the public, they appeared to be very in love with each other.

It just made it all the harder for Rachel. She was well on her way to falling very much in love with Finn Hudson. She loved his big heart, the way that he cared about people no matter who they were. Rachel didn't think she had ever met someone quite like him.

And when they were together, she couldn't help the feelings she had when he held her close or when they kissed (and the only time they had really kissed was outside the theater the night Finn went to her show and after Finn's football game when Rachel had attended. They hadn't talked about it since then). Finn did things to her that she had never experienced before, and she craved more of it. Rachel tried not to let it show too much, but she didn't know how good a job she was doing (Santana always made fun of her and Puck still grumbled, so they weren't very good judges).

Rachel was yanked out of her thoughts by Kurt's next comment. "Well, we're at least going to have to make sure that your dress is body-hugging, anyway."

Rachel's head whipped towards him. "Excuse me?"

Kurt didn't waver. "Your dress has to be tight," he clarified.

"Why?"

"Because people have been speculating about when your baby bump is going to start showing, of course."

Rachel's mouth dropped open. "But… But I'm not pregnant!" She should have known that people were going to start saying something like this. She was surprised that she hadn't seen more articles that were spreading that exact rumor. Even so, she still couldn't believe that people were talking like that.

"Which is exactly why we need to find you a tight white dress to wear to the reception," Kurt reasoned. "You're going to wear a white dress whether you like it or not, but I won't make you put on a gown. We'll go shopping tomorrow."

But Rachel was still stuck on the fact that people thought she was pregnant. "Finn!" she yelled.

Finn poked his head out from the living room, where he had been watching a game on the television. "Rach, I already told you that I wasn't going to get in the middle of this fighting." Finn had already had to referee more than one argument, but he had made both Rachel and Kurt promise to play nice today.

"That's not what I need to talk to you about!"

Finn came into the kitchen and let out a sigh when he saw all of the spread sheets depicting the different aspects of the party. He didn't even bother to begin and try and decipher what it all said. Besides, it was more than likely that Kurt and Hiram would decide to change it all again anyway.

Finn took Rachel's hand and squeezed it gently. "What's wrong, baby?" he asked. He noticed the way Rachel's cheeks pinked a little at the affectionate name. But they had to keep up the charade in front of Kurt. Finn tried to ignore how good it felt to call Rachel that.

Kurt rolled his eyes again. "Oh, she's just freaking out because people are speculating that the two of you got married because she's secretly pregnant."

Finn's lips turned down in a frown as he sat next to Rachel and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "Rach, tabloids are going to try and spread rumors like this all the time. You can't let it get to you. I wouldn't worry about it."

"But still!" It was an automatic reaction to curl into Finn's side. "The way that people think we only got married because I'm pregnant…" Rachel trialed when she realized that there wasn't actually a real reason that they got married in the first place. It had all been based on intense feelings they had developed in just a few short hours.

Finn looked down at Rachel, and she could read in his expression that he was thinking the exact same thing. He squeezed his arm around her shoulders as Kurt began to speak.

"I mean, the people that are closest to you know that that's not the reason the two of you got married. It may have been a very, _very_ short relationship, but it's obvious that you both love each other very much. If you know that, then that's all that matters."

Rachel nodded and Finn placed a tender kiss on the top of her head. Both of them were completely lost in their own thoughts as Kurt began to shuffle through his spread sheets. Kurt's speech had been wonderful, but it only reminded them of the lie they were putting on for the rest of the world. And each thought about how good they were at it. What did it mean? If they could pass this love off to everyone else, what did that say about them?

Rachel proceeded to ignore Kurt as he began to prattle on about more plans for the reception. Instead, she snuggled further into Finn's arm and closed her eyes. For now, she would just focus on this feeling and pretend that the rest of the world didn't exist.

* * *

Rachel tossed the magazine she had been reading onto the table. "It's been over a month. You'd think that they would be finished talking about us already."

The magazine cover featured a picture on the side bar of Finn and Rachel, once again throwing speculation out about their relationship. Rachel supposed that she should be glad that they weren't plastered as the main feature on the cover anymore, at least.

"I don't think the entertainment world has seen a surprise quick wedding last this long," Santana said. She jabbed Rachel in the shoulder with a finger, and Rachel rolled her eyes.

"Stop it!" Rachel hissed. They were currently at some type of boutique that Kurt had dragged them to in order to try on dresses. The last thing Rachel needed was for him to hear Santana dropping hints about the truth behind Finn and Rachel's marriage.

Santana held a hand up and inspected her nails. "I'm just saying."

It was then that Kurt came into their private room, pulling an entire rack of white dresses behind him. Rachel's mouth dropped open in shock. She loved shopping and trying on dresses, but this seemed to be a little much.

"Kurt…" Rachel began warily.

"Don't start with me, Rachel Hudson," Kurt said as he pointed an imperious finger at her. "As promised, none of these dresses are actual wedding dresses. They are all beautiful, wonderful, and completely suitable for the reception. Not to mention white, which was the most important thing. The bride has to wear white."

Santana snorted. "But the real question is, can she still wear white? I mean, it's after the wedding night, after all."

"Santana!" Rachel exclaimed. Santana knew that Rachel and Finn hadn't slept together on that night—much as Rachel may have wanted to.

_"I… Oh my God… I can't believe we're married." Rachel tilted her head back to allow Finn easier access to her neck as his lips nipped and sucked up and down it. He currently had her pressed against the door of his hotel room with her legs wrapped around his waist._

_ "I know," Finn mumbled against Rachel's neck before he kissed back up to her lips. Rachel's fingers gripped his bare shoulders—she had stripped him of his shirt long ago. "Married."_

_ Rachel wiggled against him and Finn groaned. "Well take me to bed then, husband." She ran her hands down his chest and tugged on his belt buckle to emphasize her point._

_ Finn grinned before he kissed her hard and slid his hands under thighs, lifting her up and carrying her to the bed. He set her down on it gently and his fingers found the zipper on her dress. He quickly slid the dress from her body before his hands traced up and down her curves, captivated by the sound of her moans._

_ Leaning down, Finn pressed his lips to Rachel's for a deep, passionate kiss. Rachel moaned again and arched against him. When Finn broke the kiss to move his lips down her neck and across her collarbone, Rachel reached between them and struggled with his pants until she had pushed them down. Wrapping her legs around his waist, Rachel rubbed her hips against Finn's._

_ "Rachel," he moaned._

_ "Yes, Finn?" Rachel breathed._

_ Finn pulled back to stare at his new wife. Her hair was messy, her lips were swollen from his kisses, and the soft skin of her neck and chest were littered with the hickies he had given her. She was absolutely gorgeous and Finn wanted nothing more than to kiss her and let the world fade away from around them. He felt this undeniable pull towards Rachel that he didn't completely understand but wanted to explore more._

_ Still, he knew that he should wait for this. While they were now married, Finn also knew that they still weren't exactly sober. Somewhere in the back of his lust-filled mind, he wanted to do the right thing by Rachel and wait for this. He knew that this would be the right thing to do._

_ So Finn leaned down and kissed Rachel tenderly, his lips moving gently against hers. The kiss took her breath away and made her cling to Finn. When he pulled away, he brushed her hair away from her face and gave her a smile._

_ "This needs to be right for you," Finn told her._

_ Rachel blinked through her pleasure-filled haze. "What?"_

_ "This." Finn gestured down to the way their bodies were intimately pressed together. "I know that we're married but we're a little…" He trailed off, unable to find the right word to describe what they were feeling right now._

_ But Rachel understood him. She nodded her head and pulled him closer. "I know what you mean," she said._

_ "I want this to be special for you," Finn continued. "And you deserve more than some quick night in Las Vegas. I want you so bad right now, Rachel. I've wanted you from the moment I saw you. I want to give you everything."_

_ Rachel stared into Finn's earnest amber eyes and felt her heart fill with warmth. Even though her body was buzzing right now, she knew that Finn was right. Wrapping her arms around his neck, Rachel hugged Finn tightly. He buried his face in her neck and pressed several gentle kisses against her skin._

_ "You're right, Finn," she murmured. "Thank you."_

_ Finn pressed his lips to her forehead. "Anything for you," he said. He really meant it, too. _

_ Rachel smiled brightly at him and kissed him. "Can you still hold me?" she asked._

_ Finn rolled onto his back and pulled Rachel into his arms. She rested her head on his chest, sliding one hand across his abdomen. Finn's calloused fingers traced up and down her bare back, lulling Rachel into sleep. As she drifted off, she thought of one thing._

_ This was real. This felt right._

"Please, Santana," Kurt said as he made a face. "Can we not discuss those details of my brother's life? There are just some things that I don't need to know."

"I'll have you know that Finn is very chivalrous," Rachel immediately defended. Santana gave her best friend a pointed look, and Rachel's cheeks turned bright pink. For the most part, she ignored it as Kurt let out another disgusted noise.

"We need to stop talking about this," he pleaded. He pulled Rachel from the little sofa that she had been sitting on and pushed her towards the rack of dresses. "Now will you go and try some dresses on? We need to find the perfect one and we don't have very much time."

Santana shook her head. "I can't believe that this reception thingy is in a week and you haven't found a dress yet."

"It's not my fault that Rachel is being extremely picky about her dress," Kurt grumbled. "I don't know how many stores we've been to, but we haven't found a single thing yet."

"By the way, I can't believe that you're making all of us wear matching dresses." Santana was referring to Rachel's other friends, who had been dubbed as "bridesmaids." The group included Santana's girlfriend Brittany, and a few of Rachel's friends from college—Tina and Mercedes. Their dresses were going to be a rose-pink color and very simple. "That's completely ridiculous. It's not like there's going to be a wedding ceremony, or anything."

Rachel huffed and planted her hands on her hips. "Excuse me, I'm standing right here."

"And you still haven't picked a dress. So get to it!"

Rachel spent the next forty-five minutes weeding through the dresses on the rack that Kurt had picked for her. She had finally neared the end and was losing all hope—after all, they really only did have a week left to find a dress and there hadn't been anything promising thus far. But then Kurt shoved another dress in Rachel's hands and pushed her into the dressing room.

When Rachel put the dress on, she knew it was the one.

It was a short dress, as they had decided before. This one was strapless with a sweetheart neckline and made with a beautiful overlay of vintage white lace. It was absolutely gorgeous and Rachel felt amazing in it. It wasn't a wedding dress, but she still felt incredibly bridal.

Rachel stepped out of the dressing room, smoothing her hands over the dress. This really was the perfect dress for her to wear. As soon as Santana saw her, she stopped searching through the racks and came to stand by her best friend.

"This is the dress," Santana declared. "Lady Hummel, get over here! We found the dress."

Kurt came bustling over to the pair of friends with his arm full of white cocktail dresses. "But I found all of these—" When he saw Rachel, he immediately ceased talking and dropped the dresses he had in his arms. "Perfect. That is absolutely perfect." He gave Rachel a side hug. "Finn isn't going to know what hit him when he sees you."

* * *

Leroy and Burt watched as Hiram and Kurt ran around the tent they had rented for the reception. The two men had been moving non-stop ever since they had arrived. Burt, Leroy, and Finn had been regulated to a corner of the tent where they couldn't touch anything (Penny was with a babysitter and Blaine had been ordered to keep an eye on the "bridal party").

Kurt had ordered Finn away about twenty minutes ago to go and get dressed in the casual suit that had been picked out for him. So at least he wasn't dealing with watching them run around and harass the other workers.

"How do you think Rachel is doing?" Burt asked. "Finn said that Kurt has been driving Rachel insane with all of the planning."

Leroy chuckled. "I have gotten a few calls from Rachel, especially this past week. Kurt and Hiram have really gone over the top with this. Poor Rachel and Finn. I do not envy them at all." Leroy had warmed up to Finn the tiniest bit after he had gotten them season tickets for the Jets (but he still shot dark glares Finn's way every chance he could).

Before Burt could respond to that, they heard Kurt exclaim, "Finn Hudson, don't you dare! You're not allowed to see the bride before the ceremony!"

Finn came into view, already fully dressed. He rolled his eyes at his brother. "Kurt, I'm already married. And there isn't going to be a ceremony, remember? This is just a reception."

Kurt jumped in front of the door that led the way into Rachel's room. "You're still not allowed to see her," he said. "So go away. The party is starting in ten minutes anyway. You can wait that long."

"You have been stressing Rachel out to no end," Finn said. "Let me see her."

"She's fine," Kurt said dismissively. "Now go away."

Burt and Leroy watched with interest as Finn continued to try and convince Kurt to let him see Rachel so that he could check up on her. Burt and Leroy looked at each other and then back to Finn.

"Uh oh," Leroy mumbled.

"Definitely uh oh," Burt agreed.

It was obvious that Finn's concern for Rachel was stemming from deeper feelings that he had developed for her. Leroy had been apprehensive of the ruse that came with this marriage because he didn't want his daughter to get hurt. Burt didn't want to see any backlash with Finn's career if the truth about this came out. But neither of the parents had thought about what would happen if Finn and Rachel had started to develop real feelings for each other.

It was then that Rachel pushed open the door behind Kurt. She peered out to see what all the fuss was about. Also, Kurt had demanded to get a final check on her appearance before the party started. Her makeup was light and natural, and her hair had been swept up into a loose twist. Given that Kurt was arguing with Finn, Rachel decided to ignore him completely and stepped out of her makeshift dressing room.

Finn stopped arguing abruptly as soon as he caught sight of Rachel. His mouth dropped open and his eyes widened. On the other side of the room Leroy's face turned an interesting shade of red and Burt chuckled. This just got much more interesting.

"Wow, Rachel," Finn breathed. He cleared his throat and took Rachel's hand, pulling her towards hm. "You look… you look amazing."

Rachel blushed and smoothed her free hand over her gorgeous lace dress. "Thank you," she said. "You look pretty handsome yourself."

"You're welcome," Kurt stated in a snarky voice from behind the couple.

Without taking his eyes from Rachel, Finn planted his hand on Kurt's head and pushed him away. "Today isn't about you. Bye."

"But—" Kurt sputtered as he attempted to return his hair to its usual volume without using a mirror.

"_Bye,_" Finn repeated firmly.

Kurt stomped away (to find a mirror, most likely), all the while grumbling about ungrateful brothers and sister-in-laws. Rachel laughed and shook her head and Finn squeezed her hand. She turned to look up at him, a gentle smile on her lips.

"I'm sorry he's been on your case for the past month," Finn said. His thumb ran across her knuckles, and he didn't even realize that he was doing it.

Rachel shrugged her shoulders. "I'm not the only one that he's been bothering. He wouldn't leave you alone, either. And he only wanted to make this nice for us, so I don't really mind."

Finn laughed. "That's not what you were saying two weeks ago. I think you were ready to rip his hair out."

"That's because he wouldn't leave me alone about a dress for this!" Rachel exclaimed. "To be fair, though, he did find the dress that I'm actually wearing."

"And you're beautiful," Finn said sincerely. Seeing Rachel in that white dress made him flashback to their wedding and he couldn't push his feelings away. And having Rachel look up at him with a smile on her face made him think about the future and where this could lead.

Finn didn't know if he was supposed to be thinking about that, given that Will had laid out an entire plan for this relationship. But this was Finn's life and he had made this decision—he could feel himself falling for Rachel more and more.

On the other side of the room, the two men were still watching the young couple interact.

"Leroy," Burt said with a chuckle. "You should probably breathe."

Leroy's face had gone from red to purple. He sucked in a short breath before he exhaled slowly and shook his head. It only made Burt laugh harder.

* * *

Half an hour later, the party was in full swing. Kurt had made Finn and Rachel enter the room after all the guests had arrived so that they could be announced as Mr. and Mrs. Hudson for the first time. Kurt and Hiram were still running around to make sure that everything was going smoothly, so Finn and Rachel thought that they would be able to finally have a moment's peace.

But it wasn't like that at all.

Everyone wanted to know the story of their romance and subsequent marriage; how they met, how they fell in love so quickly, how Finn proposed, how they knew that getting married was the right thing to do.

Thankfully, Finn and Rachel had their story well-rehearsed. Everyone ate their cheesy and cute story up, and it was just plausible enough that no one questioned it. Still, Finn and Rachel were getting asked the same questions every five minutes; they hadn't had a moment to themselves since even before the reception began.

For what seemed like the thousandth time that night, someone unexpectedly grabbed Rachel's left hand and yanked it towards them. She certainly didn't appreciate it when people did that, but they didn't even bother to ask to see the ring anymore.

Rachel felt Finn take her other hand and lace their fingers together, squeezing comfortingly. She turned to flash him a thankful smile before she turned to find one of Finn's aunts grasping her hand.

"Oh my, Finn," the aunt said. "This is quite the ring."

Finn plastered a smile on his face. "What can I say, Aunt Greta? I guess I just have good taste." Greta was probably his least favorite relative. He knew that he was going to have to see her eventually, but that didn't mean he was thrilled about it.

Rachel pulled her left hand free from Greta's grip and patted Finn's chest. "He really does," she affirmed with a sweet smile. Finn returned it with a sincere one of his own.

But that didn't deter Greta in the slightest. She grabbed Rachel's hand again and brought the ring close to her face. "Elsa!" she yelled, calling out for her cousin. "Come look at this ring that Finn bought for his new wife!"

Finn bit back a groan and gave Rachel a sympathetic look. He held Elsa at the same level as Greta, so he wasn't looking forward to this conversation either. Rachel just sighed and leaned back against Finn's chest. Everyone had at least one relative like this, so Rachel knew that she was just going to have to be as polite as possible.

"Finn, don't you think that ring is a bit much?" Elsa said as soon as she saw it. Greta nodded her head in agreement.

Rachel pressed her lips together to keep herself from saying something she would regret. Finn sighed in exasperation. "I knew it was the perfect ring for Rachel," he said simply. He hoped that that statement would put an end to the discussion, because he could feel Rachel tensing against him. This was supposed to be her night, and he didn't want her to be stressed out.

(Yes, Finn was aware that he had become very attuned to Rachel's emotions. No, he wasn't going to think about what that meant.)

Elsa shook her head. "Finn, you must have spent quite a bit of money on this ring."

Before either Finn or Rachel could come up with a response to that, Greta added, "Especially since this marriage probably isn't going to last long enough for a ring of that quality."

Rachel gasped and Finn wrapped an arm around her waist, pulling her behind him. He opened his mouth to put his rude relatives in their place, but they were saved by the bell—literally.

Finn and Rachel looked around in confusion. "What the hell is that sound?" Finn asked.

Kurt appeared from somewhere in the crowd, holding a little silver bell in his hand. "We place one of these at every table!" he exclaimed. "Anytime someone rings it, the two of you have to kiss."

Finn and Rachel shared a look at Kurt's explanation. Over at the other end of the reception, Leroy and Puck were wearing matching pinched looks on their faces while Santana had completely burst into laughter. This just kept getting better and better.

"So come on!" Kurt yelled when Finn and Rachel just continued to stare at one another. "Kiss already!"

Finn slid his hand up to cup Rachel's cheek. Looking down at her with a lopsided smile, he waited until she nodded her head slightly before he brought his lips down over hers, giving her a tender kiss.

Their crowd of guests applauded and cheered as Finn and Rachel broke apart. With a smile, Rachel stood on her tiptoes and pressed another quick kiss to Finn's lips. They did have an act to keep up after all. And if Rachel enjoyed kissing Finn, then that just made it all the better.

"This must be what hell is like," Leroy grumbled. He may have decided that Finn wasn't that bad, but that didn't mean that he wanted to watch him kiss his daughter.

Puck nodded his head. "Will told me that I wasn't allowed to beat the shit out of him. Apparently, he's important to the team or something."

"You have to keep an eye on your sister," Leroy said. "I know her. She's falling for Finn, Puck. I don't want her to get hurt."

"Aw, Pop!" Puck exclaimed. "Don't say that! She can't be falling for him!"

"Noah," Leroy said sternly. "I'm serious."

Puck sighed as he watched his little sister gaze up adoringly at his best friend (who he still wasn't really talking to, by the way). Finn returned the look with a tender one of his own, and Puck sighed again.

"Fuck," he grumbled. "Hudson is falling for her too."

Before Leroy could respond to that, Kurt came hurrying over to Puck with a microphone in his hand. "Puckerman! You need to take this!"

"What? Why?" Puck demanded as he looked at the microphone now in his hand.

"Because you have to give a speech, of course," Kurt said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"Why am I giving a speech?"

"Well, I'm the honorary best man. But I'm too busy making sure nothing goes wrong during the reception to give a speech. Since you're Finn's best friend—not to mention Rachel's older brother—you get to give the speech. So go on, get up to the front."

Without giving Puck time to protest, Kurt shoved him to the front of the room. All eyes were immediately on him, and Puck sighed as he turned on the microphone. He looked over at Finn and Rachel—who were watching him with amused looks on their faces—and sent then a quick glare before he began speaking.

"Hi, everyone. So, uh… Finn and Rachel got married about a month ago in Vegas. Right? How insane is that?"

The crowd laughed and Puck gave a weak laugh of his own to go along with them (but really, though, it wasn't funny. His best friend up and married his little sister. Finn should have at least asked for permission first, or something).

"Look, Rachel is my little sister, and it's my job as her big brother to protect her. If there was anyone that I thought who could do as good a job as I can, it's my best friend Finn Hudson. So here's to Finn and Rachel and all the happiness that they'll have together."

With his speech finished, Puck lifted the glass of champagne that had been handed to him to toast the newlywed couple. Everyone lifted their glass as well, and Puck downed his in one go before he headed back towards the corner of the room.

"That was surprisingly nice, Puckerman," Kurt said as he retrieved the microphone from him. "Very well done, I'm impressed. Now where is Hiram? I know he wanted to say a few words."

"Of course he did," Leroy grumbled into his glass. Turning to his son, he said, "That was a really nice speech, though. I was kind of surprised by it."

"So was I."

Puck and Leroy turned to find Finn standing there. There was a slightly tense beat that passed, and all three men noticed that Rachel was across the room watching them. So for her sake, at least, they all decided to keep this conversation civil.

"Best friend?" Finn said, referring to Puck's speech.

Puck nodded his head. "Look, dude. You may have pissed me off, but you're still my best friend. We're still not talking about the fact that you married Rachel without checking in with me or my fathers, and I'll beat the living fuck out of you if you do anything to hurt her. But… we're cool." He held his fist out to Finn.

Finn grinned and fist bumped Puck. "We're cool," he repeated.

Suddenly, Rachel appeared next to them. She tucked herself into Finn's side and he wrapped his arm around her as if it were the most natural thing in the world. The sound of the bell rang in the room, and Rachel stretched on her tiptoes to press a kiss to Finn's lips.

Both Puck and Leroy groaned. Just because they had accepted it didn't mean they wanted to see it.

Her duty to tradition done, Rachel said, "Did the two of you finally make up?"

"Christ, Rachel," Puck grumbled. "Do you have some kind of radar, or something? Finn and I are cool. Don't read too much into it."

The bell rang once again, and this time Finn pulled Rachel against him and kissed her. She smiled against his lips, reaching up to wrap her arms around his neck.

When they broke apart again, Finn said, "Don't worry, Rach. Your brother isn't going to kill me."

"Yet," Puck grumbled.

"But keep kissing my daughter in front of us and we might test that theory," Leroy said darkly.

"Okay…" Grabbing Finn's hand, she began to tow him away from her father and older brother. She didn't want to push her luck any more than she already had. Before they went to join the rest of the reception again, however, Rachel stopped and turned to smile at them.

"Thank you," she said. "I know this hasn't exactly been easy for you, but you've both been handling this really well. So thanks."

Puck and Leroy nodded their heads and then watched as the couple walked away. Rachel tugged on Finn's hand, trying to get him to go out onto the dance floor. Finn resisted a little, but as soon as Rachel turned her big brown eyes on him, she relented. Finn wrapped his arms around Rachel and pulled her close as they swayed to the slow music. Rachel rested her head on Finn's chest, playing with the lapels on Finn's suit jacket. They really looked as if they were a couple that was very much in love.

Leroy sighed. "They really are falling for each other, aren't they?"

It really seemed as if Finn Hudson and Rachel Berry were actually falling in love.

* * *

**Author's Note: Thank you so much for all of the reviews. :) Thanks for reading!**


	5. we're falling in

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything. This chapter title comes from the song "Falling In" by Lifehouse.**

* * *

Rachel rolled out of bed and stretched before she pulled a sweatshirt over her tank top and shorts pajama combo. Moving over to her dresser, she picked up her rings and slipped them on without thinking about it. It had really, honestly become part of her daily routine.

Today was her day off, so she had plans to just sit around and watch some movies. Sometimes, she just needed one of those days where she didn't have to do anything. Life had been a little stressful as of late, so it was going to be nice to relax.

It had only been a week since Finn and Rachel's reception. Even though it was a private event, someone had leaked pictures. According to Will, it actually really helped in backing up their story—Finn and Rachel appeared to be incredibly in love with each other. Even the trashy tabloids weren't questioning their relationship anymore.

Sometimes, it didn't even really feel like a lie. They would be out and about in the city holding hands as they walked, and it would feel like the most natural thing in the world. Finn wrapped an arm around Rachel and pulled her close when they would stand together. Rachel often rested her hand on Finn's chest when they were standing like that. More often than not, Finn and Rachel would find some way to casually touch each other.

With a sigh, Rachel pushed those thoughts away. She padded out into the kitchen, intent on making herself breakfast. What she found there made her stop in her tracks and stare with parted lips.

Finn was standing at the stove, wearing only plaid pajama bottoms as he fried an egg. Rachel watched the play of muscles in his strong back as he moved, flipping the egg in the pan. How he managed to make something so simple look so sexy was beyond her, but she definitely wasn't complaining. Rachel wouldn't mind waking up to this every morning.

She had been so caught up in her staring that she hadn't noticed that Finn had stopped moving and was now looking at her over his shoulder. He grinned before he turned the oven off, sliding his egg onto the plate.

"There's some fresh fruit and yogurt in the fridge," Finn said as he nodded towards the appliance. "I picked it up the last time I went to the grocery store."

"I… what?" Rachel shook her head a little. Her mind was still hazy from sleep and it was now paired with lust. The fact that she knew what the broad, strong chest felt like underneath her fingers wasn't exactly helping matters. "Oh, fruit! Right."

Finn tried to hide his chuckling as Rachel gave herself another little shake and made her way towards the fridge. Her heart beat a little faster when she realized that her favorite kinds of fruit were in there, along with the brand of yogurt that she normally got. Knowing that Finn paid attention enough to know what her favorites were made that warmth filled her heart again.

Pulling out her selections, Rachel joined Finn at the kitchen table and sat across from him. He was still sitting there without a shirt on, God help her. Finn Hudson was entirely too attractive for his own good, and he didn't even realize it.

"Thank you for this," Rachel said as she mixed her fruit into her yogurt. "You didn't have to."

Finn shrugged his shoulders and cut into his egg. "I was at the store and figured I should pick some up." Finn tried to act nonchalant and brush it off, but he knew how much it meant to Rachel and he liked that he could make her happy with something as simple as this.

Rachel scooped a spoonful of her yogurt-fruit mix and popped it into her mouth. "Mmmm," she said. "I don't think I've had melon this good since that morning at the hotel."

Rachel didn't even think about the words that left her mouth. That morning they had woken up in the hotel room together, they had ordered breakfast from room service. She heard Finn's fork scrap against the plate as he dropped it in shock, and Rachel froze. She bit her lip before she looked up at Finn.

"Right. I actually wanted to talk to you about that, by the way," Rachel said quietly. There was no better time to bring it up, she supposed.

"What? About the morning… the morning we woke up together?" Finn asked. Despite the fact that they had been living together for a little over a month, they had never really talked about that night. It was always just that one thing they didn't talk about. Not because they didn't want to, but more because they would have to end up talking about feelings they weren't sure that they were ready to face.

"Yes, about that morning." Rachel traced her fingers around the cup of her yogurt. "I think that I've finally remembered most of what happened."

Finn looked up at Rachel with wide eyes. "You have? Really?"

Rachel gave Finn a suspicious look. The way he was looking at her made her wonder what exactly he knew about that night and how much he hadn't told her. "Finn…"

"Yes Rachel?"

"What aren't you telling me?"

Finn rubbed the back of his neck and gave her a sheepish look that was almost too adorable for her to be mad at. "I may have actually remembered most of what happened that night," he said quietly.

Rachel took a moment to contemplate the meaning of Finn's words. "All of it?" she asked slowly.

"Pretty much most of it," Finn admitted. He should have known that they were going to have this conversation eventually. Strangely enough, Rachel didn't look mad, exactly. Instead, she was wearing a thoughtful look on her face.

"So you remember picking the ring out?" Rachel asked. She looked down at her hand, where the ring and its matching band were residing. As always, it sparkled when it caught the light and Rachel marveled over how perfect it was for her. It wasn't overly flashy, but it was a beautiful ring.

She noticed Finn looking down at her ring as well. Biting her lip, she looked to the third finger on his left hand and noticed that he had his wedding band on as well. Rachel felt her cheeks began to heat up and she immediately looked away. Even though they had no plans to really go out in public today, they were still wearing their rings. Rachel wasn't sure what that meant, but it probably had something to do with that swooping feeling in her stomach.

"Yeah," Finn said quietly. He remembered walking into that jeweler's and being totally confident in the ring he had selected. It looked as if it belonged on Rachel's finger—as if Finn was meant to put it there. "I remember picking that ring out."

"And you remember trying to propose to me again?"

Finn smiled at that. "Yeah, I do. I also remember you saying that I didn't need to propose again because my first one was perfect."

Rachel's cheeks went from pink to bright red. "I did say that," she relented. "And… actually getting married? You remember that as well?"

Finn nodded his head. He went back to when she was standing in front of him in her blue dress, holding his hands as they were pronounced husband and wife. He couldn't help the smile that formed on his lips.

"And I'm guessing you remember everything that happened after that?" Rachel asked softly. She tried not to think about how Finn's lips felt on hers or how his calloused hands stroked and caressed her bare skin. But really, all she wanted was for that to happen again.

Finn looked her in the eyes, his gaze dark and intense. "I remember," he murmured.

Finn and Rachel held each other's gaze for a long moment that stretched on. Finn reached out slowly and covered Rachel's hand with his own, his fingers stroking over her rings. Rachel was lost in her memories of that night before she spoke again.

"I know we could have… we could have really done something that night," Rachel said. She didn't know why she couldn't actually say that they almost had sex. It was probably because Rachel actually wanted to have sex with Finn, honestly. Still, she continued on. "But you stopped us."

Finn nodded his head, his fingers wrapping around hers. He knew that it had been the right thing to do even though he had really wanted it to happen that night. And if he wasn't mistaken, it really seemed as if Rachel wanted it to happen as well.

"I just wanted to thank you for that," Rachel said as she looked at their entwined hands. "You didn't have to stop us, but you did. And that… it really means a lot to me, Finn." Finn's caring, honest nature was only making Rachel fall for him even harder.

Finn looked at Rachel and gave her that adorable crooked smile. Rachel couldn't help herself—she stood and leaned across the table, kissing Finn's cheek. He looked surprised before he grinned at her, and Rachel smiled brightly at him in return.

* * *

It turned out that Finn didn't really have anything to do that day either, so he and Rachel spent their day off together. Rachel stayed curled up on the couch watching movies on Netflix while Finn watched some training videos and worked out in the home gym. Rachel made some stir fry for lunch and they ate together. It was a nice day, and exactly what Rachel had needed to relax.

Later in the afternoon, Finn's phone started buzzing on the coffee table. "Finn!" Rachel called. He was getting ready to go on a run, so he was in his room near the back of the apartment. "Your phone is ringing!"

"Who is it?" Finn asked as he stuck his head out of his bedroom.

Rachel caught a glimpse of him down the hall. Once again, he wasn't wearing a shirt. His chiseled chest and arms were basically staring her in the face. Seriously, Finn was just too attractive.

It took her a moment to respond. "Kurt! It's Kurt. Kurt is calling."

Finn smiled and disappeared back into his room. "You can answer it, Rach. If he's calling to nag about something, just hang up on him."

Laughing, Rachel reached for Finn's phone and answered it. "Hello, Kurt!" she greeted. "Finn can't come to the phone right now."

"Oh, hello Rachel!" Kurt said. "It doesn't really matter if I talk to Finn or you. I had a question, actually."

"Of course. What's going on?"

"Well…" Kurt sighed. "Blaine and I are in a bit of a dilemma. The hot water pipes in our apartment burst and it'll be a week or so before we can get them fixed."

"Oh no!" Rachel exclaimed. "That's awful." She thought for a moment before an idea suddenly occurred to her. "Why don't you, Blaine, and Penny stay here while the pipes in your apartment are getting fixed?"

"Rachel, we couldn't ask you to do that—" Kurt said immediately, but Rachel interrupted him.

Laughing, she said, "You said that you had a question. I'm assuming that that was it. And it would be no problem at all!"

It was then that Finn came out from his bedroom. He took a sip from his water bottle and gave Rachel a curious look. "What wouldn't be a problem at all?"

Kurt was already talking about how they were going to pack their bags and they should be over at Finn and Rachel's apartment in about an hour. Rachel quickly finished the conversation before she hung up and turned towards Finn.

"The hot water pipes in Kurt and Blaine's apartment burst and it will take a week for them to fix it," Rachel explained. "So I told them that they could stay with us during that time."

Finn's mouth dropped open. "Uh… really?" he asked.

Rachel nodded her head. "Of course! Why not? They need a place to stay and we have the room."

"The room that you're staying in," Finn pointed out.

Rachel stopped talking immediately. "Oh. Right." She hadn't thought about that at all. While it was true that they had a guest room, it also happened to be the room that Rachel was currently residing in. And if she had invited Kurt and Blaine to stay with them, well… that only meant one thing.

"So they're really coming here?" Finn asked.

Rachel nodded her head slowly as she tried to figure out what the best course of action was. "They'll be here in an hour. Oh my God, we have an hour to move my things out of the guest room and into your room!"

Finn gave a little sigh. "I guess we better get started then."

* * *

An hour later, Finn and Rachel had moved all of Rachel's belongings into Finn's room. She stood there, looking at all of her clothes situated next to Finn's. Her jewelry box and all of her other personal items were situated on the dresser next to Finn's as well.

"Are you sure that you're okay with this?"

Rachel turned to find Finn leaning on the door to his bedroom, watching her. She gave him a warm smile and nodded her head. "I'm fine. Don't worry about me."

Before Finn could say anything else, there was a knock at the front door. Both Finn and Rachel went to answer it. As Finn pulled the door open, he wrapped his arm around Rachel's shoulders and pulled her into his side.

Instead of actually seeing Blaine, Kurt, or Penny, they saw a large pile of bags. Rachel blinked in surprise and Finn just shook his head. He tugged some of the bags off the ridiculous pile and tossed them into the living room in order to help them.

"Finn!" Kurt screeched. "Those are Louis Vuitton! Don't throw them around like that!"

Finn rolled his eyes. "Kurt, you're only here for a week. I don't understand why you needed to bring all these bags."

Kurt gasped dramatically. "Finn, a week is a very long time! I needed to bring everything for my bathroom routines, not to mention everything I need to make sure that my clothes look perfect before I put them on! And we have Blaine's clothes and Penny's. We need all these bags!"

"Sorry about this, Finn," Blaine said as he stepped around the bags and into the apartment. He had Penny in his arms and she giggled and clapped excitedly when she saw Finn and Rachel. "I tried to tell him not to pack all of this, but he didn't listen to me."

Rachel waved her hand before she held her arms out for Penny. The little girl went willingly, wrapping her arms around Rachel's neck and hugging her tightly. "Let's move your things into the guest room and then we can get ready for dinner."

Finn smiled when he saw how Rachel interacted with his niece. Blaine, noticing this, nudged Finn and gave him a knowing look.

"Thinking about having one of your own?" he said.

Finn's head jutted back in surprise. "What?"

Nodding his head towards Rachel and little Penny, Blaine continued, "I know you two haven't been married for that long, but you must be thinking about starting a family. I saw the way you were looking at Rachel just now."

"I… what?" Finn didn't really know what to say to that. So maybe he had been wondering what it would be like to see Rachel holding a little girl with her hair and his eyes. He hadn't realized that he was being that obvious about it.

Laughing, Blaine clapped Finn on the shoulder. "Don't worry about it, man. The two of you have plenty of time to figure this out. I have no doubt that Penny will be getting a little cousin one day."

With that said, Blaine went to go make sure that his husband wasn't causing Rachel too much trouble. Finn pinched the bridge of his nose as he let out a sigh. This was going to be a very, very long week.

* * *

Kurt and Blaine had insisted on making dinner for Finn and Rachel to thank them for their hospitality. They knew that there was no use in arguing, so Finn and Rachel let Kurt and Blaine take over their kitchen and they took Penny out for the day.

They had so much fun together. Finn and Rachel took Penny out for ice cream and then brought her to the zoo. Even though they were out in public, Finn and Rachel were able to push the semantics of the ruse they were putting on for the public aside so they could just focus on Penny. It made things a lot easier and less stressful.

"This was nice," Rachel said as she walked hand in hand with Finn. Penny was running ahead in front of them, tugging her balloon from the zoo behind her.

Finn chuckled. "This is probably going to be the only nice day we'll have this week. I lived with Kurt for a very long time, remember? He's not exactly an easy guy to live with."

"I just felt bad," Rachel said. "And I figured that it would be easy to offer up the space since we had it. And they are family." Rachel blushed at slip up and immediately scrambled to correct. "I mean, they're your family."

Finn smiled at her and squeezed her hand. "Nah, it's fine. It's not a big deal that they're staying with us. I guess we'll just have to be careful since Kurt and Blaine will always be around us."

"I wouldn't worry about that," Rachel said. "I happen to be a superb actress. And you're very good at this, as well. I think we'll be able to handle it just fine."

Well, if it meant that Finn and Rachel had to do the lovey-dovey touching thing and had to exchange a few kisses every once in a while, she certainly wasn't going to complain. And from the smile on Finn's face, he wasn't going to either.

Finn and Rachel returned to their apartment with Penny not long after that. Kurt and Blaine had dinner all set up, complete with their dining room decorated. They really went all out in this dinner.

"Don't worry," Blaine said as they sat at the table. "We'll clean all of this up."

Kurt shook his head. "I think you should keep all of this, even after dinner is over. Do you see how I arranged the lights? It's so much better now! And the draping that I added? It completely opens this room up."

Finn pointed his fork at Kurt. "If you think I'm going to let you redecorate my apartment during the week that you're here—"

"I would do no such thing!" Kurt exclaimed. "But I wouldn't mind offering up some suggestions. This place could—"

"Kurt, don't even think about it—"

Rachel watched the brothers argue with wide eyes. She turned towards Kurt, who just had an amused look on his face. Penny couldn't have been bothered by the whole thing. She just happily munched away at her food and waved at her fathers.

"Are they always like this?" Rachel asked.

"They are," Blaine confirmed. "But it's something that you get used to after a while."

"I will burn all of your puffy vests, Finn Hudson!" Kurt exclaimed.

Finn snorted. "Yeah? I highly doubt that will do much. But I happen to know if I shred all of your scarves, that might bother you a bit more."

"You wouldn't dare!"

"Okay." Rachel reached for Finn's hand and covered it with her own, effectively ending the argument. "I think we should all just take a break for a little, don't you think?"

"We should," Blaine agreed as he nudged his husband out of his chair. "We're just going to put Penny to bed and they we'll start cleaning up. And don't worry, Finn. I won't let Kurt change the décor of your apartment."

Finn was grumbling under his breath about annoying little brothers as Rachel led him into the living room and sat him on the couch. She turned on ESPN before she sat next to him. Finn surprised Rachel when he wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her against him.

Rachel didn't say anything as she cuddled into his side, her fingers stroking against his shirt. She could feel Finn slowly relax the longer they sat there together.

And then Rachel felt herself being nudged awake. She opened her eyes and lifted her head from Finn's chest, looking around as she tried to rub the sleep from her eyes. She hadn't even realized that she had fallen asleep, but apparently she had about an hour ago.

Rachel's eyes fell to Finn, and she saw that he was giving her an affectionate smile. He stood from the couch and offered Rachel his hand. Taking it, she allowed Finn to pull her from the couch and down to his (now their) bedroom.

Finn gathered up his pajamas and pointed towards the bathroom. "I'm just going to…" Trailing off, he waited for Rachel to nod her head and then he said, "You can get changed in here, if you want."

Rachel gave him a sleepy smile and quickly changed into a pair of shorts and a tank top. It wasn't long before Finn came back into the bedroom, shutting the door behind him. He walked to other side of the bed, and a few moments passed where they just stared at each other and then the bed.

"So, uh…" Finn rubbed the back of his neck. "How do you want to do this?"

Rachel shrugged her shoulders and hid a yawn behind her hand. Honestly, she just really wanted to go to bed and she didn't care how it happened as long as it happened. And Finn's mattress did look really comfortable…

Rachel was pulled from her thoughts when Finn spoke again. "I can sleep on the floor if you want, Rach. I don't want to make you uncomfortable."

Yawning again, Rachel shook her head. "Don't be ridiculous," she said. "You're not sleeping on the floor, Finn. This is your bed, after all. I can sleep on the floor, if—"

"Rachel, there is no way that I'm letting you sleep on the floor," Finn interrupted. He pulled back the covers and pointed to the bed. "Get in."

Smiling, Rachel crawled into the bed and curled up under the covers. Finn climbed in on his side, careful to leave enough room so as not to make Rachel uncomfortable. She didn't seem to mind, however. She curled on her side, facing Finn and closed her eyes.

"Good night, Finn," she mumbled sleepily.

As she drifted off, Rachel thought that she felt gentle fingers tracing down the curve of her cheek. And she definitely heard Finn murmur, "Good night, Rach."

* * *

When she woke up in the morning, Rachel found that she was basically wrapped around Finn.

She was cuddled against him with her head on his chest and one leg thrown over him, his strong arms wrapped around her. Rachel froze as she became aware of her surroundings, unsure of what to do. Should she try to pull herself out of Finn's arms and risk waking him up, or should she wait for him to wake first and see what he did then?

Rachel didn't decide fast enough. Finn began to stir and before Rachel could do anything else, his eyes opened and connected with hers. He smiled sleepily and his arms tightened around her.

"Morning, Rach," Finn murmured, his voice husky with sleep. It was obvious that he wasn't quite awake yet.

"Good morning," Rachel squeaked, still completely immobile in his arms.

Finn kissed her forehead, causing Rachel's heart to thump wildly in her chest. A few moments later, Finn's eyes widened as he finally realized how they were situated. His face turned bright red and he didn't move either.

"So," Finn began, but he wasn't really sure how to continue. He was barely able to stop the spout of word vomit about how nice it felt to have Rachel in his arms like this, but he managed.

"So," Rachel repeated. She shifted in Finn's arms just enough to look up into his face. As she turned, she caught sight of the clock and she gasped. "Oh my gosh! I'm going to be late for rehearsal!" Rachel pulled herself from Finn's arms and almost tripped in her haste to get out of the bed.

Finn laid there for a second, trying to figure out what happened. "Rachel?"

"I have twenty minutes to get to rehearsal!" Rachel exclaimed. She ran to her drawers and yanked a sweater over her head before she ran out into the living room, where her purse and shoes were.

Finn rolled out of bed and followed her, a smile playing on his lips. She just looked so adorable right now, and he couldn't help it. Kurt and Blaine were already awake, sitting in the kitchen with some coffee.

"What's going on?" Kurt asked in alarm as he watched Rachel jam her shoes on her feet.

Finn chuckled. "Apparently Rachel is going to be late for rehearsal."

"Ah," Blaine said with a knowing look. "Did you maybe stay up too late?"

Kurt made a face. "Blaine! I don't want to think about my brother doing that!"

The tips of Finn's ears turned red, and he was thankful that Rachel hadn't heard Blaine's comment. Finn's face reddened further when Rachel ran up to him, grabbed his cheeks, and kissed him.

"Bye, Finn! Bye, Blaine and Kurt. I'll see you all when I get back!"

Finn watched Rachel go with a stunned look on his face. It slowly turned into a smile, and he settled back in his chair.

"Is she always like that?" Kurt asked.

Finn grinned. "I guess so."

* * *

"So your brother, his husband, and their kid are staying at your apartment for the next week?"

Finn nodded his head and took a sip of his beer. He was currently sitting in a bar with Puck. They used to do this all the time, but after Finn had married Puck's little sister, they had kind of stopped hanging out. Finn had to admit that it was nice to have his best friend back.

"It's going to be a crazy week," Finn muttered.

Puck knocked the rest of his beer back and ordered another one. "I believe that. I mean, it's not like it'll be easy. You have to put up Hummel, his husband, and their kid. You guys only have two bedrooms, right?" When Finn nodded his head once again, Puck continued. "So it must be hard for you to figure out. It's not like you can sleep on the couch every night."

Puck started laughing at the thought, but he slowly stopped when he noticed that Finn was looking anywhere but him and taking steady drinks from his beer. Puck's eyes narrowed into a dark glare as the realization suddenly dawned on him.

"Hudson. Where are you sleeping?"

Finn didn't answer. He was too busy trying to figure out what he should do with his last minute or so before he got the shit beat out of him.

"Hudson," Puck repeated. "Where the hell are you sleeping?"

"Uh…" Finn cleared his throat. "In my bed."

"And where is my sister sleeping?"

Cue another long swig of beer.

"Hudson. Where is my baby sister sleeping? And I know that she wouldn't be sleeping in your bed, because you're already skating on thin ice considering you married her while you were drunk in Las Vegas."

Yeah, this so wasn't going the way Finn had planned.

(And no, Finn had never planned on telling Puck that he was now sharing a bed with his baby sister.)

"I swear to God, Hudson—"

"When did you start calling me by my last name all the time?" Finn asked in a weak attempt to change the subject.

Puck ignored Finn. "You better not be sleeping in the same bed as my little sister."

Finn sighed. He was a grown man and even though he knew that there was a very good chance he was going to get his ass kicked, he might as well own up to what was happening. "What if I am?"

Puck sucked in a deep breath, but it didn't really do much in the way of calming him. "Well then I'll have to tell you this, Hudson: If you touch my baby sister, or even lay a finger on her—if you so much as _breathe_ on her—I will tear you apart. You hear me?"

"Fuck you, okay? I would never hurt Rachel. I hear you," Finn said. That didn't mean Finn was going to heed that warning. There was something happening between him and Rachel, and he didn't want it to stop.

* * *

Rachel walked back into the apartment, tired but pleased with the day's long rehearsal. She was thankful that Kurt and Blaine had leftovers from dinner the night before, because she was just going to grab some of that and then change into some yoga pants.

Penny was playing with some toys in the living room, and Rachel stopped to say hello to her before she continued into the kitchen, where Kurt, Blaine, and Finn were situated.

"Hey, baby," Finn greeted. "How was your day?"

Rachel took the hand that he was holding out and allowed Finn to pull her against him. Well aware of Kurt and Blaine watching them, Rachel stretched up onto her tiptoes and pressed her lips to Finn's.

One of Finn's large, strong hands dropped to her hip and pulled her closer, deepening the kiss. Rachel reached up to her wrap her arms around his neck. Just as she melted into him, Kurt cleared his throat.

"I hope that the two of you are aware that you have two people sitting in the kitchen with you. Not to mention a child down the hall," Kurt stated.

"Oh, leave them alone," Blaine said. "They're still in that honeymoon phase."

Kurt made a face. "That doesn't mean that I want to see it."

Pulling Rachel against him, Finn rolled his eyes. "Kurt, I've walked in on plenty of things that I didn't want to see with you. I'm allowed to kiss my wife if I want to."

Rachel tilted her head up to beam at Finn, and he smiled down at her. She moved to rest her head against his chest again, and it amazed her how much being wrapped in Finn's arms relaxed her. She closed her eyes as Finn lifted one hand to play with the ends of her hair, enjoying the feeling.

A thought suddenly occurred to Rachel, and she really wanted to try it out. She lifted her head and looked into Finn's eyes, biting down on her bottom lip. Finn's eyes zeroed in on the action, the amber orbs darkening.

Rachel slowly stretched up onto her tiptoes, reaching up with one hand to touch his cheek. She touched her lips to Finn's, and he deepened the kiss immediately, sliding one hand into her hair and the other to the small of her back. His tongue slipped into her mouth and Rachel moaned, pressing herself closer to him.

Rachel had never felt like this before, and it was all just from one kiss. This was unlike anything she had ever experienced, and she wanted _more_ of it.

"Look, we get that you're in love, and everything, but can you not make out in front of us?" Kurt said in a snarky voice.

Finn didn't want to end the kiss, but Kurt kept making stupid comments. So he pressed another gentle kiss to Rachel's lips before he pulled back just enough to glare at Kurt. He opened his mouth to say something, but Rachel patted his chest and kissed his cheek, causing Finn to smile down at her.

Sensing that the couple needed some time alone together, Blaine ushered Kurt out of the kitchen. "We're just going to get Penny ready for dinner, okay?"

As soon as Kurt and Blaine left, Finn turned Rachel's face back towards his and kissed her again, spinning her around and lifting her onto the kitchen counter. Rachel wrapped her arms around his neck, responding to Finn's deep, passionate kisses just as eagerly.

There wasn't even anyone watching, so it wasn't like they had to keep the act up. But Finn couldn't help himself, and neither could Rachel apparently. They exchanged heated kisses for minutes that seemed to stretch on into eternity before they broke apart, each of them breathing heavily.

"You know," Finn said after a moment. He reached up and tucked some of Rachel's loose hair behind her ear, and her cheeks flushed prettily. "Kurt and Blaine are here for another six days. And they're right, you know. We are supposed to be in the honeymoon phase."

Rachel immediately caught on to what Finn was suggesting, and her heart beat faster in her chest. "So maybe we should keep doing this." Rachel gestured between the, feeling her face turn even more red. "To keep appearances up."

Finn grinned at her before he nodded his head and leaned forward, pressing his lips to hers again. Rachel thought that this was one of the best decisions she had made since this whole situation started.

* * *

Three days later, Rachel woke up to find Finn's arms wrapped around her. She smiled and snuggled further into his chest, amazed at how nice this felt. Rachel knew that she shouldn't get too attached to sleeping in Finn's bed, but she was going to enjoy it while she could.

When Finn woke, he smiled at her and Rachel couldn't help but to place a quick peck on his lips. She was getting used to kissing him whenever she wanted to, simply so they could "keep the act up." But it was more than that for both of them, even if they hadn't acknowledged it yet.

Climbing out of bed, Rachel slipped on one of Finn's sweaters and he took her hand as they walked into the kitchen. Both Kurt and Blaine were already in there, the former placing a bowl of Cheerios down in front of Penny. The little girl squealed excitedly when she saw Rachel and Finn, alerting her parents to the newcomer's presence.

"The lovebirds are up," Blaine teased, and Rachel blushed. They had caught Finn and Rachel making out on more than one occasion over the past three days.

"Yeah, about that," Kurt said. "Blaine and I have decided that we'll get out of your hair for the night. We're taking Penny to Blaine's parents and we're staying the night. You two can have all the fun you want."

Blaine gave his husband a pointed look before he turned to the newlywed couple in front of him. "I think what Kurt means is that the two of you should go out to dinner and have a nice romantic night with each other."

Looking down into Rachel's eyes, Finn said, "That sounds like a really good idea."

"It does," Rachel agreed as her heart began to thump harder in her chest. Blaine and Kurt left to go and get Penny ready for their night out, leaving Finn and Rachel to watch each other.

"Do you really want to go out tonight?" Rachel asked softly.

Finn reached for Rachel's hand and gave her that adorable half smile. "Let me take you out," he said. "I want to. On a real date."

Rachel beamed at him and squeezed his hand. "Alright."

* * *

**Author's Note: I'm so in awe of the response that I've gotten for this. Thank you so much, and thanks for reading!**


	6. you know i love you so

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything. This chapter title comes from the song "Yellow" by Coldplay.**

* * *

Rachel lifted her head and took a moment to study Finn's sleeping face. She was going to miss this—and she wasn't afraid to admit that anymore. This was the last night that she and Finn would have to sleep in the same room, since the pipes in Kurt and Blaine's apartment had been fixed.

Their date had been wonderful. Finn had been such a gentleman (not that she had expected anything less), and they had so much fun. They kept it simple, with dinner and a walk through the park. It was nice to have some time to themselves without the pressure of their family or the media. For once, Finn and Rachel didn't have to put a front up.

While she had been lost in her thoughts, Rachel hadn't realized that Finn had woken up. He watched her with an affectionate smile, waiting until she became aware of him.

When Rachel's eyes caught Finn's, she blushed and smiled, burying her face in his chest. Finn chuckled, running his hands up and down her back.

"Good morning," he said. After the first morning when they had unexpectedly woke up in each other's arms, Finn had enjoyed waking up like this.

Rachel lifted her head and stared at Finn for a moment before she leaned forward, pressing her lips to his. One of Finn's hands came up to tangle in her hair, and Rachel smiled against his lips before she pulled away.

"Good morning," she murmured. She stretched a little before she rested her head on Finn's chest once again. He played with the ends of her hair, thinking about how he wanted to kiss her again. He wondered if their frequent exchange of kisses would continue when Kurt and Blaine were gone—he certainly hoped so.

"I had fun last night," Rachel said with a sweet smile. Finn brought his hand up and cupped her cheek, stroking his thumb across her soft skin. She leaned into his touch, enjoying the feeling of his calloused fingers. "A lot of fun."

Finn gave her a sweet half smile that made Rachel's heart skip a beat. "So we can do it again sometime?" Finn winced at how he sounded like a nervous high school boy, but Rachel thought it was incredibly sweet.

"Of course," she said before she kissed his cheek. Rachel pushed the covers back and attempted to climb out of the bed, but Finn wrapped his arms around her waist and held fast. Rachel laughed and tried not to get distracted by the way he began to kiss her neck. "Finn!"

Finn trailed soft kisses down her neck. "Where do you think you're going?"

"Finn, I have to get out of bed." Even as she spoke, Rachel tilted her head back, allowing him more access to her neck. She bit her lip to keep a moan from escaping, but it just felt so good. The slight scruff on his jaw rubbed against her skin, and Rachel threaded her fingers into his hair to hold him there.

Finn smiled against her neck. "Nah," he murmured. His lips moved up Rachel's neck and to her ear. He gently nibbled on her earlobe before he brought his mouth down over hers, kissing her deeply.

Rachel's body melted underneath his and she arched against him, wrapping her arms around his neck. She knew that she had to get out of bed and begin her day, but that didn't really seem very important anymore. All that mattered were Finn's lips on hers, and his warm, strong body covering hers.

* * *

Finn and Rachel still hadn't surfaced from their room when there was a knock at the door. Afraid of what he would find if he interrupted them, Kurt opted to answer the door. He couldn't say that he was very surprised when he saw that Puck was their guest.

"Puckerman," Kurt greeted. "What are you doing here?"

Puck shrugged his shoulders as he stepped into the apartment. "I was bored. Didn't feel like making my own breakfast. So I decided to stop here." He smiled when he saw Penny and looking further into the apartment, he saw that Blaine was in the kitchen. With a furrowed brow, Puck asked, "Where are Rachel and Finn?"

Kurt rolled his eyes. "Blaine and I took Penny and let the newlywed couple have a night to themselves. They haven't surfaced from their bedroom for hours."

Puck's face turned an interesting shade of purple, and he stared daggers through the bedroom door at the end of the hallway. A few beats of silence passed before Puck stalked to the door and banged on it. He had a feeling of déjà vu—it was like when he found his best friend with his little sister on that fateful day.

"Rise and shine!" Puck called through the door. "Wake the fuck up!"

Something thumped on other side of the door, and Puck smirked when he heard Finn curse and Rachel gasp. Serves him right for whatever he was doing with Puck's little sister.

Meanwhile, in the bedroom, Rachel crouched next to Finn and ran her fingers over the back of his head. When Puck had thumped on the door, Finn had been so surprised that he had fallen off the bed and hit the back of his head.

"Finn, are you okay?" Rachel asked.

Finn nodded his head and let out a sigh as he glared at the door. "Yeah, I'm fine. What the hell is your brother doing here?"

Rachel gently stroked the bump that was forming on the back of Finn's head and kissed the side of his face. "I have no idea. But I guess we should go and see what's going on."

Finn stood up and then offered a hand to Rachel, helping her to stand as well. She turned to go to the door, but Finn caught her wrist and pulled her back against him. Wrapping on arm around Rachel's waist, Finn brought his other hand up to her cheek.

Finn took a moment to just stare into Rachel's eyes. Her breath caught in her throat when she saw the intense emotions swirling there. Before she could even begin to comprehend the look on Finn's face, he leaned down and covered her mouth with his, kissing her passionately. Rachel was breathless when he pulled back, and she surged up on her tiptoes to kiss him one more time.

They left the bedroom hand in hand, and neither Finn nor Rachel missed the way Puck was glaring at their entwined fingers. He said nothing since Blaine and Kurt were there, but the look on his face made his feelings clear. Puck did not like the fact that his best friend was now blatantly all over his little sister.

Never mind the fact that Puck had known all along that Finn was going to fall for Rachel. It didn't matter. Rachel Berry was Puck's little sister and it wasn't like he wanted to think about them sharing the same bed.

"Good morning, love birds," Blaine said with a grin. "I'm assuming that the two of you had a good night?"

Finn pulled Rachel's chair out for her before taking a seat next to her. He slung his arm over the back of her chair and smiled at her, ignoring the dark look that Puck was sending their way. "We had a great night," he said.

"Fantastic," Rachel agreed. She grinned at Blaine and Kurt, deciding to ignore her older brother as well. "Thank you."

"It wasn't a problem," Blaine said. "You two deserve a nice night out whenever you can get it."

Kurt rolled his eyes, but his voice was teasing. "We're glad. And besides, we really don't need to see the two of you making out in the kitchen all the time."

Puck whipped towards his best friend and his little sister. "What the _fuck?_"

Oh shit. Finn and Rachel shared a look. They were so screwed.

* * *

Rachel was putting the extra blankets from the guest bedroom away in the hall closet when Finn returned to the apartment. He had been helping Kurt and Blaine with their bags, as they were headed back into their own apartment. Puck had left before then, and Rachel was still fuming over how he had acted.

Finn took the blankets from Rachel and set them aside before he pulled her into his arms. "He's just looking out for you. You know that, right?"

"I know." Rachel rested her cheek against his chest. "But why does he have to act like that?"

Finn smoothed his hand over Rachel's back soothingly. "Because he's your big brother."

"You're not mad?" Rachel titled her face up to look at him. "He was such a jerk to you, Finn."

Finn shrugged his shoulders before he leaned down and pressed a gentle kiss to Rachel's lips. "I think he was serious with what he said at the reception. It'll probably just take him—and the rest of our family—some time to adjust."

Rachel smiled sweetly at him and touched his cheek. "You always know the right thing to say, Finn."

Finn really liked knowing that he could make Rachel feel better. He hugged her and then bent to kiss her, but another knock at the door interrupted him. He let out a sigh and Rachel giggled before she patted his chest and went to answer the door.

"Daddy!" Rachel exclaimed in surprise when she opened the door. "Papa! What are you doing here?" Before either of her fathers could answer, Rachel caught sight of her older brother smirking behind them. Apparently, Puck had taken it upon himself to inform Hiram and Leroy about the new developments between Finn and Rachel.

Rachel turned and held back a laugh when she caught sight of the look on Finn's face. He looked absolutely terrified, and she reached back to take his hand.

"He really meant what he said, huh?" Rachel murmured to Finn.

"Uh… yeah." Finn swallowed hard. "I take that back."

* * *

Rachel stood at the foot of the bed in the guest bedroom and stared at it. It just looked so… big and empty. She frowned and crossed her arms over her chest, her thoughts racing entirely too much for her to actually go to sleep.

Rachel didn't really know what was going to happen that night. After her fathers had stayed for hours basically interrogating Finn and Rachel (with Puck snickering in the background the entire time), it had been nice for the couple to have a little bit of time for themselves. But when midnight had rolled around, she had pulled herself from Finn's arms and told him that she was going to bed. He had kissed her goodnight but otherwise hadn't said anything else, and Rachel had returned to the guest room.

She had been spoiled over the past week, she knew. Sleeping in the same bed as Finn had been absolutely wonderful. But Rachel didn't want to push the issue, especially since the relationship between her and Finn was so new. So Rachel climbed into the bed and pulled the cover up to her chin, trying her best to settle in.

Three hours later, Rachel realized that she wasn't getting any sleep at all. She tossed and turned and even tried counting sheep, but nothing was working. Rachel stared at the ceiling before she climbed out of bed and padded down the hall.

Rachel stared at Finn's bedroom door, her hand raised and poised to knock. She tried to convince herself that this wasn't a stupid idea, but she still wasn't sure if she was being too forward.

Suddenly, the door swung open and Rachel found herself staring at Finn. They stared at each other in surprise for a moment before Finn smiled.

"So… hey," Finn said.

"Hi." Rachel bit her lip, and she noticed how Finn's eyes zeroed in on the action, his amber orbs darkening. "I… It's three o'clock in the morning."

"It is."

Rachel chewed on her lip. "I couldn't sleep," she admitted.

Finn's smile widened and he reached out, pulling her closer to him. "Neither could I," he said. "So I guess we're going to have to do something about that, huh?"

Rachel began to smile as well, following Finn as he stepped back into his bedroom. "I have gotten used to sharing a bed with you lately."

"Really?" Finn quirked his eyebrow in a playful manner. "I guess you should know that I've gotten used to how you hog the blankets all the time."

Rachel gasped and pushed on Finn's shoulder. "I do not hog the blankets, Finn Hudson!"

Finn caught Rachel's hand and pulled her towards the bed, falling back on it. It caused Rachel to be draped across him, and Finn slid his hands up and down her back. "Yes you do," he said. "You hog the blankets and your feet are cold, but I can't sleep without you in my bed."

Rachel's heart filled with warmth and she tucked herself into Finn's side as he pulled the blankets up around them. She buried her face in Finn's chest, inhaling his comforting scent. Rachel could already tell that sleep was going to come much easier now.

"I'm sorry you got ambushed today," Rachel murmured around a yawn.

Finn chuckled. Sure, he had pretty much been terrified when Hiram and Leroy had shown up unannounced at the apartment. Considering that it was now obvious that Finn and Rachel were in a very real relationship, it had gone surprisingly well. "I didn't mind," Finn said truthfully. "The family comes with the territory, right? You just put up with my brother and his family for the past week. I think I can handle your fathers and your brother… even if they do scare me a little bit."

Rachel giggled before her eyes drifted shut, the sound of Finn's heartbeat lulling her to sleep. His fingers continued to move up and down her back, and he pressed a kiss to her forehead once her breathing evened out.

With a smile on his lips, Finn closed his eyes. In addition to being his wife, Rachel Berry (Hudson) was now also his girlfriend. Finn was well on his way to falling in love with her—in fact, he was pretty much already there.

* * *

"Finn! Rachel! Over here!"

Finn and Rachel turned slightly, facing the cameras that were demanding their attention. Finn had one arm slung around her, holding her to his side while Rachel rested a hand on his chest. The smiles on their faces were genuine; despite the fact that posing for the press wasn't exactly one of their favorite things, they didn't really mind it anymore.

They were currently at a concert for Finn's friend Sam Evans. His band was releasing a new album, and they were having a big concert for it. The album had already created a lot of buzz, so neither were surprised that there was so much press.

Ducking his head to speak in Rachel's ear, Finn said, "Are you ready to head inside?"

"Definitely." Stretching on her tiptoes, Rachel pressed a quick kiss to Finn's cheek (and of course the cameras got a shot of it). Hand in hand, they headed into the concert's venue. They easily found their group of friends—Puck was there, along with Mercedes, Kurt, Blaine, Santana, her girlfriend Brittany, Tina, and her boyfriend Mike.

"Aw, the happy couple is here!" Blaine said as he leaned over to hug Rachel and greet Finn. Rachel saw Puck make a face behind their friends, and once she released Blaine, she went to hug her brother but discreetly stomped on his foot. Puck scowled and pushed her back in retaliation. Before it could turn into a full-fledged sibling fight, Finn wrapped an arm around Rachel's waist and pulled her back against him.

"Now kids, don't fight," Finn said teasingly. He dropped a kiss to the side of Rachel's neck and she smiled, sliding her hand up to tangle in his hair. Puck glared at the couple, crossing his arms across his chest.

"Whatever, Hudson," he grumbled.

Taking pity on Puck—Finn knew that this definitely wasn't an easy situation for Rachel's big brother—Finn said, "You know, Quinn was invited."

Puck immediately perked up at that. "Really?"

"Yeah. I think she'll be getting here soon." Puck was gone before Finn was even finished speaking. Rachel laughed as she watched her older brother search for the blonde lawyer—she didn't think she had ever seen him so enamored over anyone before.

"That was nice of you," Rachel murmured as she turned in Finn's arms.

Finn shrugged his shoulders as he spread his hand across Rachel's back. "At least it will distract him for a little while."

Grinning, Rachel stretched up on her tiptoes to kiss Finn's cheek. "I like the way you think, Finn Hudson."

"I like _you_, Rachel Hudson," Finn murmured in return before he caught her lips in a deep kiss. As their lips moved together, Rachel's heart began to beat faster and faster—because of Finn's touch and the way that he called her "Rachel Hudson." When she pulled away and rested her head on Finn's chest, she realized that she wanted to be called that for the rest of her life… and not just for the next three months.

That's how long it had been since they had gotten married. Now Finn and Rachel were in this weird limbo where they were married and dating at the same time. Finn was truly, honestly courting Rachel, and they had managed to keep it a secret. Their parents and Puck and Santana didn't even know that Finn and Rachel's relationship had developed past the show they had been putting on for the public.

Rachel didn't know if they were going to stay married once the six months were up. But she really hoped so… because she was beyond in love with Finn Hudson.

Sam's band began playing a slow love ballad, and Finn wrapped his arms around Rachel's waist and pulled her back against him. Despite Finn's insistence that he didn't dance, he gently swayed back and forth with her in his arms.

Rachel rested her head on Finn's broad chest and closed her eyes, loving the feeling of being wrapped in his strong arms. She rested her tiny hands over his, marveling in the size difference once again. The feeling of his hands on her made Rachel think about that night in the hotel room, and her began to heat up. To distract herself, Rachel opened her eyes and tilted her head up to look at Finn.

"I thought you didn't like to dance," Rachel said with a smile.

Finn shrugged his shoulders. "You like to dance," he said by way of explanation.

Rachel grinned at him and slid her hand into his hair once again, tugging Finn down towards her in order to kiss him. Now that she thought about it, it really wasn't any wonder that he got her to marry him with just a few words and a song. Finn Hudson did something to her—something that she didn't know how to control, but it was something she definitely wanted to have more of.

The song ended and Finn kissed Rachel again before he offered to go and get drinks for everyone. Once Finn had left, Rachel went in search for her big brother. She needed to have a few words with him, whether he liked it or not.

It wasn't long before Rachel found Puck by the stage. "Where's Quinn?" she asked. "Did you scare her off already?"

"Funny," Puck said with a snort. "Where's Hudson? Did you let him off his leash?"

Rachel rolled her eyes. "I'm trying to have a civil conversation with you, Noah Puckerman. Can you at least try?"

Puck sighed. "I'm guessing you're here to talk to me about how much you love Finn and how the two of you are actually in a relationship now, right?"

Rachel's mouth dropped open in surprise. "I… uh… How did you…?"  
"It wasn't that hard," Puck said as he finally cracked a smile. "You're my little sister, Rachel. And Finn is my best friend. It's pretty obvious to everyone how the two of you feel about each other."

"So you're… you're okay with it?" Rachel's hands twisted together as she anxiously awaited her older brother's answer. Rachel had always been close with her big brother, and Finn was his best friend. It would have been terrible if that had all been ruined because they couldn't see eye to eye on what was going on.

"I don't really have a choice, do I?"

"Noah."

Puck smiled again. "Of course I'm okay with it, Little Berry. I was serious with what I said at the reception, you know. I know that Finn can make you happy and keep you safe. That's all I want."

Rachel smiled brightly at her older brother before she threw her arms around him and hugged her tightly. Finally, everything was falling into place.

Quinn joined them not long after that, and they all made their way back over to their group of friends. Finn was there, and he slung an arm around Rachel's waist when he saw her, leaning down to press a tender kiss to her lips.

This time, Puck still made a face. But he did so teasingly, and Rachel playfully pushed her older brother. Finn smiled and nodded his head, and Puck did the same in return. At least Puck wasn't going to pull the big brother routine and punch Finn when he saw him with Rachel… not every time, anyway.

* * *

Rachel rested her head on Finn's shoulder as they walked back to their apartment. Rachel had her arms wrapped around one of Finn's both of her hands holding one of his larger ones. When they reached the front door, Finn surprised Rachel by sweeping her up into his arms.

Laughing, Rachel wrapped her arms around his neck. "Finn Hudson, what are you doing?"

"You looked tired, baby," Finn murmured. "Besides, I'm pretty sure there's something about me carrying you over the threshold in the book of husbandly duties."

Rachel kissed Finn's cheek and then snuggled further into his embrace. Finn carried her through the apartment and into their bedroom, setting her on the bed. Rachel's eyes were already closed, and Finn smiled down at her before he brushed her back from her face and began placing soft kisses on her cheek.

With her eyes still closed, Rachel's lips turned up into a smile. Finn moved his lips down her neck, gently nipping and sucking at the soft skin. Rachel tilted her head back, allowing him more access as her hands slid up and down his back. Her fingers slipped under his shirt, leaving a burning trail on his skin.

"Finn," Rachel breathed. Her eyes slowly opened, and her heart beat loudly in her ears. She had been thinking about this ever since she and Finn had started sharing a bed.

Rachel tugged on Finn's shirt once, and he sat up enough to allow Rachel to pull it off. She ran her hands down his bare, toned chest. Finn's hands slid up Rachel's thighs underneath her dress, pushing it up until Rachel sat up and allowed Finn to pull it off. She laid beneath him just as she had on the night they got married.

"God, Rach," Finn murmured as he ran a hand up and down her body. "You're so beautiful."

Rachel's cheeks turned pink and she twined her arms around Finn's neck, pulling him down to kiss her again. Her legs wrapped around his waist, and she rocked against the hardness she could feel, causing Finn to groan. He pulled his lips from hers and kissed down her neck again, not stopping until he got to the edge of her bra. Finn's lips moved along the edge of it, teasingly nipping and sucking.

Rachel moaned and rolled her shoulders in an effort to get her bra straps to slip off. Getting the hint, Finn reached under Rachel's arched back and unhooked her bra, pulling it off.

But before Finn could get a good look, Rachel reached down and tugged on his belt. She quickly pulled it off and then unbuttoned them, pushing them down until he could kick them off. Without wasting any more time, Rachel slipped her fingers into the waistband of Finn's boxer briefs and pushed them down as well.

Finn reached up to touch Rachel's cheek and kissed her again, his lips demanding and hot against hers. Rachel arched up, rubbing her body against Finn's until she pushed on his chest and unexpectedly flipped them over.

Finn grinned and ran his hands up Rachel's sides, cupping her breasts in his large hands. Rachel moaned again and threw her head back as he began to massage, his fingers tugging on her nipples.

"_Finn,_" Rachel breathed. She ground her hips down against his, and Finn really couldn't take it anymore. He basically tore her panties off, throwing the broken pieces somewhere to the side of their bed. Incredibly turned on, Rachel slid her hands up Finn's chest and leaned down, pressing her lips to his in a hot kiss. Unable to wait any longer, Rachel lifted up and sank down on Finn's heard length. They both cried out at the feeling of finally being connected for the very first time.

Rachel pressed her hands to Finn's abdomen, keeping herself still as she adjusted to his size. Finn's hands fell to her waist, gripping her hips tightly. With a smile, Rachel began to move, rolling her hips slowly. Finn groaned and tightened his hands on her hips before he sat up, attaching his lips to hers.

Rachel's hands knotted in Finn's hair and she moaned against his lips, her hips moving a little faster. Finn's lips moved down Rachel's neck until he reached her breast, taking one nipple into his mouth. Rachel threw her head back, arching further up as he switched to her other breast.

Suddenly, Finn flipped Rachel underneath him again. She squealed and giggled, and Finn grinned before he reached down and hitched her leg up around his waist. Rachel moaned at the change in angle as Finn did the same with her other leg. Finn began to move with smooth, even thrusts, and Rachel could already feel herself careening towards the edge.

Moving in perfect rhythm with Finn, Rachel dug her fingers into his shoulders and cried out. It wasn't long before she was tightening around Finn, falling over the edge. Finn groaned her name again as he followed her.

Careful not to crush her under him, Finn settled over Rachel and buried his face in her neck. He placed several soft kisses along her sweaty skin. Rachel stroked her fingers up and down his back as a happy sigh escaped her lips.

Finn rolled onto his back and pulled Rachel with him, settling her onto his chest. Rachel snuggled close and closed her eyes, a smile playing on her lips. She was asleep within moments, and Finn kissed her forehead before he drifted off as well.

* * *

The morning sun streamed through the windows, but it didn't annoy Rachel when she woke up. She stretched and let out a little moan of appreciation at the delicious soreness her body was feeling. Smiling at the feeling of Finn's firm chest beneath her, she opened her eyes to find him already awake.

Finn gave her a smile of his own when Rachel tilted her head to look up at him. He watched her for a few moments, his fingers tracing up and down her back. "I love you," he murmured.

Rachel's eyes widened and she lifted her head to stare down at Finn. He seemed surprised by his own words, but then he smiled; he wasn't going to take it back. Somehow, in this crazy situation, Finn Hudson had fallen in love with Rachel Berry… and she had fallen in love with him, too.

Rachel beamed at Finn and surged forward to kiss Finn. "I love you too," she breathed against his lips when they pulled apart. She rested her chin on her folded hands from her spot on his chest, just watching him for a few moments.

Finn brushed his hand over her hair. "What are you thinking about?" he asked.

Studying Finn's face, Rachel thought back to that night three months ago. "Did you ever think that we were going to end up here? Three months ago, when we woke up in that hotel room, I mean. Did you ever think that we would be here?"

Finn grinned. The answer to that question was easy, and he didn't hesitate. "I did," he said simply.

Rachel's eyes were bright. "Really?"

"Really. Why do you think I proposed to you in the first place?"

With an excited squeal, Rachel launched herself at Finn and wrapped her arms around him, kissing wherever she could reach on his face and neck. Finn laughed and wrapped his arms around Rachel, rolling with her until she was settled under him.

"I love you Rachel Hudson," Finn said. He could say that now. And she was going to be Rachel Hudson forever.

"I love you too, Finn Hudson," Rachel whispered before Finn kissed her.

* * *

Finn knocked on the door and shifted back and forth anxiously. He had stared down huge football players without a problem, so he didn't know why he was so afraid of two men.

It was probably because they were the fathers of the woman he loved.

And, you know. There were two of them.

Thankfully, it was Hiram that answered the door. "Finn!" he exclaimed. "We weren't expecting you and Rachel today!"

"Uh…" Finn smiled and tried to force himself to calm down. "Rachel isn't here with me."

"Oh?" Hiram's eyebrows shot up. "It's just you?" When Finn nodded his head, Hiram stepped aside and allowed him to walk into the house. "Then come on in." Shutting the door behind him, Hiram called out, "Leroy! Finn is here!"

Finn swallowed hard and followed Hiram through the house and to the kitchen. Leroy was already waiting there, chopping up some cucumbers. Finn really hoped that it wasn't symbolic for something.

"Son," Leroy greeted when he saw Finn. "What can we do for you?"

Finn took a deep breath. It was now or never, and he was going to do it right this time. "I wanted to talk to the two of you. I have a question. About Rachel. About me and Rachel, I mean."

Sharing a look with his husband, Hiram said, "Isn't that sweet? He's spent so much time around Rachel that he's developed her tendency to ramble."

"They've spent the past six months together," Leroy mumbled with a snort. "Go ahead, ask us the question then."

"I want to ask for your permission to marry Rachel," Finn said.

Hiram and Leroy stared at Finn and then at each other before they looked back at him. Finally, Leroy was the first to speak.

"Aren't you already married to her?" he asked.

Finn nodded his head. "I know. But Rachel and I… we're staying together. I love her."

"And now you're asking for permission to marry her… even though you're already married," Leroy said. His reaction was making Finn pretty nervous, but he pressed on. This was important, and he wanted to do it for Rachel.

"I actually wanted to remarry her," Finn explained. "Rachel deserves this."

"Yes!" Hiram exclaimed, barely able to contain himself. "Yes, of course you can remarry Rachel! Right, Leroy?" Hiram nudged his husband and gave him a pointed look.

Leroy stared Finn down for another moment before he nodded his head and smiled. "Of course you can marry Rachel… again. You have our blessing." As soon as the words left Leroy's mouth, Hiram grabbed his phone and began to call people. Finn and Leroy watched him ago, with the older man giving him a sympathetic look. "You do realize that Hiram is going to take control of the planning of this ceremony? And there's going to be another reception."

Finn grinned. He was just glad that he had received their blessing, so he didn't really care what planning happened. "I guess so."

Leroy smirked. "At least you finally got around to asking us permission to marry our daughter instead of doing it in Las Vegas."

Finn sighed. "I'm never going to live that down, am I?"

"Not at all."

* * *

Staring at her reflection in the mirror, Rachel smoothed her hands over her beautiful white dress. _This_ was what she had imagined when she thought about getting married. Though honestly, she wouldn't have traded her first wedding for anything.

Rachel would never underestimate the power of her daddy and brother in law ever again. They had managed to pull together a beautiful outdoor ceremony and another reception for Finn and Rachel (and this time, they were actually included in the planning). Finally, they were getting married in front of all of their friends and family.

Puck knocked on the door and stuck his head in. "Are you ready, Little Berry? Dad and Pop are waiting."

Rachel nodded her head and made sure that her simple updo was properly in place before she grabbed her bouquet of pink tulips. The siblings linked arms as they headed out towards their parents.

"You look nice, little sis," Puck said.

"Thank you, Noah," Rachel said with a beam.

"I still can't believe this happened, you know. You married my best friend in a quickie wedding in Las Vegas, and seven months later you're having an actual ceremony with him because the two of you managed to fall in love."

Rachel rolled her eyes playfully. "We were having a nice moment there, Noah."

Puck laughed and hugged Rachel before he handed her off to their fathers. He was part of Finn's groomsmen, so he had to head down to take his place with the rest of them. Rachel stood between her fathers and linked arms with them, waiting for that moment when they would lead her down the outdoor aisle and to Finn.

Finn looked so unbelievably handsome in his tuxedo. When Hiram and Leroy passed Rachel over to Finn, he took her hands and laced their fingers together.

The ceremony passed in a blur. Rachel and Finn's gazes never left one another's as they repeated the words that would bind them together—once again—for the rest of their lives.

And then Finn was being told that he could kiss his bride. Finn wrapped his arms around Rachel and pulled her against him, kissing her deeply. He even went so far as to dip her back, which caused their audience to erupt in even louder cheers.

"So," Finn said when they pulled apart. "Was this everything you imagined?"

Rachel reached up and touched his cheek. "You already gave me that, Finn."  
"Really?" Finn chuckled and arched an eyebrow. "You imagined getting married in Vegas?"

Taking Finn's hand, Rachel began to pull him back down the aisle. "No. But even if I hadn't realized it, I always imagined marrying someone like you."

* * *

Rachel flipped through the pile of mail that had accumulated during her and Finn's honeymoon in Cabo. Reaching a packet with a return address from Las Vegas, Rachel's brow furrowed in curiosity as she slid a finger under the lip of the envelope and opened it.

A bright smile formed on her face when she saw the contents. Grabbing them, she took them out to Finn, who was sitting in the living room watching a football game. Settling herself on his lap, Rachel brandished the contents of the envelope.

Finn kissed her cheek and wrapped his arms around her waist. "What have you got there?"

"Look." Rachel flattened them out and showed it to Finn. When he saw them, he laughed and grinned at Rachel.

They were pictures from the night Finn and Rachel got married in Las Vegas. Apparently, they had gotten pictures under the alter. Despite their inebriated state and having known each other for only a few hours, Finn and Rachel looked incredibly happy and completely in love.

"Would you look at that." Finn gestured to a picture that was hanging on the wall from their most recent ceremony. His arms were wrapped around Rachel and she had her hand resting on his chest, and both of them were looking at each other instead of the camera and grinning brightly. One of the pictures from the night in Vegas had them doing the same exact pose.

"I guess we knew even then," Finn added.

Rachel beamed before she kissed him. How could she not? She had married the man of her dreams. She had never imagined that this was how the situation would turn out, but she was incredibly lucky.

* * *

"Daddy?"

Finn smiled down at his five year old daughter. "Yes, princess?"

Madison Hudson smiled up at her father. "How did you and Momma get married?"

Next to him, Puck promptly burst out laughing. Finn's mouth dropped open and he stared at his daughter—his little girl—and tried to figure out how to answer this question without making it sound bad. Because even though he and Rachel had fallen in love and had been married for the past nine years, it still wasn't something that he wanted to explain to his five year old daughter.

"I… uh…" Finn jumped up from the couch. "Rach!"

Rachel ushered their twin sons, Austin and Conner, into the living room. They had been bouncing around the kitchen for the past half an hour, constantly asking her and Quinn when dinner would be ready.

"Finn, these two are definitely your sons. Make sure they stay out of the kitchen for the next twenty minutes," Rachel said.

"Twenty minutes? Dinner will be ready in twenty minutes!" Austin grinned and high-fived his twin. "Yes!"

Rachel couldn't help but smile and ruffle Austin's hair. At seven years old, the twins were in that stage where they wanted everything exactly when they wanted it. She sent them off to play a game until dinner was ready, and then she noticed how Puck was laughing.

Narrowing her eyes at her older brother, Rachel demanded, "What are you laughing at?"

Before Puck could answer (he was still laughing too hard), Maddie cleared up that mystery for her. "Momma, how did you and Daddy get married?"

Rachel froze and looked over at Finn, who was wearing the same look of surprise that she was. Meanwhile, Puck was still laughing. It attracted the attention of Austin and Conner, who came over to see what all the commotion was about.

"What's going on?" Conner demanded.

"Momma and Daddy were going to tell us how they got married!" Maddie exclaimed.

Puck and Quinn's daughter, Beth, appeared seemingly out of nowhere. "I want to hear this story, too!" she agreed.

"Dude," Finn hissed. "Stop laughing!"

Puck shook his head. "No way," he said. "This is just too funny." Turning towards the kids, Puck began, "Well you see, your mommy and daddy didn't really know each other that well before they—"

Rachel stamped on Puck's foot. "Before we decided to get together and talk to get to know each other some more," she said quickly.

Finn buried his face in his hands—mostly to hide the smile on his face. They both should have known that their kids would ask this question sooner or later.

Thankfully, Quinn rescued them when she announced that dinner was ready. They were having a cookout with all of their friends and family. Puck jumped up to go and help his wife move the side dishes outside, leaving Finn and Rachel to usher the kids outback.

Hours later, after Finn and Rachel had put their kids to bed, they stood together in front of their wall of pictures. Hanging up directly next to each other were the pictures from both of their wedding ceremonies. Finn grinned as he wrapped his arms around Rachel and pulled her back against him. He pressed a kiss to the side of her neck, and she smiled as she rested back against his chest.

"I can't believe Maddie asked that question today," Rachel said.

Finn chuckled. "I guess we should have expected it. They were bound to ask eventually."

"What do we even say to them?" Rachel asked with a laugh. "Can you imagine if Maddie came home and told us that she married someone in Vegas one night?"

"I'd probably kill that person," Finn said seriously. "Now I know how your fathers felt." While Rachel laughed, Finn tightened his arms around her waist. "But we should just tell them the truth. But we'll keep it as G-rated as possible, of course."

"That does seem like the best way to handle this," Rachel agreed. She turned around in Finn's arms and stressed up onto her tiptoes to kiss him. He spread his hands over her back, pulling her closer. That thrilling feeling that she got whenever Finn touched her coursed through her, and she knew that it would always be like this.

"I love you, Rachel Hudson," Finn said.

Rachel beamed and kissed him again. "I love you too, Finn Hudson. Now take me to bed."

Finn swept Rachel up into his arms and she laughed, through her arms around his neck as he carried her up the stairs and towards their bedroom. This was the feeling that they talked about in all of those epic love stories. It didn't matter that Finn and Rachel's didn't have the most conventional of beginnings. It was theirs.

* * *

**Author's Note: Thank you so much for all of the wonderful feedback to this story. I'm truly in awe of it and I thank you all for it. As always, thank you so much for reading. :)**


End file.
